by Sean Begin
Central Connecticut’s top basketball player, Kyle Vinales, was suspended indefinitely following his arrest on Oct. 25 in an incident involving his girlfriend and is “not currently participating in men’s basketball activities,” according to an athletic department spokesman.
Vinales was arrested for one count of third-degree assault and one count of disorderly conduct after his girlfriend called police and said he had hit her after an argument in her car.
Four days after his arrest and subsequent suspension, Vinales’ girlfriend, Mariam Mena, retracted her claims, speaking to both the New Britain Herald and NBC Connecticut.
“The only time any of his limbs or anything touched me was when I was hitting him. He put his hands up only to get me to stop hitting his face,” Mena told the Herald last Wednesday.
Mena originally claimed that Vinales had hit her during an argument in her car after she tried to stop him from playing music on his cell phone.
The report police filed have Vinales saying he “took the palm of his hand into her face and shoved her face up against the driver side window of the vehicle.”
The report also claimed the Mena had a “swollen bump and fresh scratch on her forehead.” Mena claimed afterwards that they were injuries she sustained in a car accident soon after the incident with Vinales.
“I was frantic. I didn’t mean to hit the car. The girl was more worried about me than anything because I was crying,” said Mena to the Herald.
Head coach Howie Dickenman, a member of the group Men Make a Difference, Men Against Domestic Violence, was quick to suspend Vinales after the incident, before Mena retracted her accusation.
Vinales is set to appear before New Britain Superior Court on Dec. 5 for the incident.