The cheers for American boxer Terence Crawford’s historic win against Saul “Canelo” Alvarez were short-lived this week, as a dramatic police traffic stop dragged down his spirits. According to a video caught on camera, an Omaha cop was seen detaining the undisputed boxing champion at gunpoint early Saturday (US time).

Crawford, who is an Omaha native, was stopped at Cass Street, where he was asked to get out of his car. As one of the other three passengers, the athlete’s head of security, Qasim Shabazz, was also in the vehicle. In an official statement the Omaha Police Department issued in light of the development, it was highlighted that officers in the downtown area observed a “vehicle driving recklessly near North 12th and Capitol Avenue,” prompting a traffic stop.

The statement further read, “While speaking with the driver, an officer observed a firearm on the driver’s side floorboard. For safety, all occupants were ordered out of the vehicle at gunpoint. The driver was later identified as Mr. Crawford upon verification of his driver’s license and was issued a citation for reckless driving. One passenger, a member of Mr. Crawford’s security team, was also found to be carrying a legal firearm.”

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Simultaneously, it also confirmed that the occupants were legally allowed to carry firearms.

Omaha police officer, boxer Terence Crawford’s head of security’s accounts of traffic stop vary

ABC7’s local Omaha chapter called KETV quoted an officer with the police department divulging that as the boxer reached in to grab his documents, including license and registration, the officer at the scene spotted a gun by his feet. Crawford firmly asserted during the confrontation that he wasn’t reaching for any gun while holding his hands up.

The US report further revealed that people accompanying Crawford in the car were ultimately also asked to exit it at gunpoint. All of them were placed in handcuffs.

Contrary to Omaha cop’s statement to KETV, the super middleweight champion’s head of security painted a different picture altogether. Detailing the series of events and their side of the story, Shabazz claimed that Crawford never actually went down for his license or any such document, instead he told the officer he didn’t have it on him at the time as he’d left everything at home.

Internal investigation to start after Terence Crawford handcuffed at gunpoint

“He had already told them. So there was no reason for him to reach for anything,” Qasim Shabazz said, per the outlet. He also offered full disclosure to the cop that both he and the sports star had gun on them as per Nebraska law. However, things eventually escalated.

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“Bud said, ‘I have a firearm too.’ The cop on his side — he went ballistic. Totally unhinged. He says, ‘Get your hands up. Get out the car. Don’t reach, don’t reach.’ But there was never a physical gun in sight,” he shared. “Everyone thought we were going to die, man.”

Shabazz even contradicted claims of them speeding, as he relayed what Crawford told the cop: “Well, how do you know I was speeding if you don’t have radar?” Although he didn’t shared the video with the American outlet, Shabazz said he caught the cop on camera saying, “I cannot — I admit that I do not have radar.”

Crawford is believed to have been charged with reckless driving during what his team believed to be an unprecedented traffic stop.

According to the Omaha PD’s statement, Omaha Mayor John Ewing and Police Chief Todd Schmaderer are in the know about the video of the incident making rounds on social media. Consequently, an internal affairs investigation was authorised.