Minnesota Timberwolves small forward Taurean Prince was caught in Miami for a charge stemming from an incident in Texas. On Thursday night, the former Baylor standout was taken into custody in South Florida for a warrant from a May traffic stop in Texas where authorities claim drugs and guns were found in his car.
The 28-year-old was subsequently arrested on an out-of-state fugitive warrant and eventually booked at the Miami-Dade County Jail, per booking records.
The warrant filed in Tarrant County, Texas, lists the charges as Possession of “dangerous drugs,” according to reports.
SLATER SCOOP: Minnesota Timberwolves’ Taurean Prince was arrested on a fugitive warrant this evening at Miami International Airport, multiple sources tell me.
The warrant is from Texas regarding “dangerous drugs,” I’m told. pic.twitter.com/i7jtHyXDVu
— Andy Slater (@AndySlater) August 26, 2022
Prince was given a traffic stop in Texas on May 19 after allegedly driving with expired tags. However, during the stop, authorities allege that they recovered multiple handguns and a vape pen containing a THC cartridge with oil. Cannabis concentrates are banned in the state of Texas. A search of the car retrieved the illegal cannabis canister, and because Prince was also in possession of a gun, he was in a tough legal spot.
However, Arlington police discovered that Prince is the owner of the guns, which were purchased legally.
Prince was pulled over in Arlington, Texas, a suburb of Dallas, and “apparently in the last week and a half, they issued a warrant for his arrest because they recovered 1/100th of an ounce of THC, which is probably the smallest amount you can have,” Prince’s attorney Kent Schaffer told People.
Was curious like many, so checked with Arlington, TX police. Taurean Prince is the registered owner of both guns found in his car from May and purchased them legally. #Timberwolves #RaisedbyWolves
— Darren Wolfson (@DWolfsonKSTP) August 26, 2022
Prince didn’t even know he had a warrant.
“The only reason we knew was because he was going out of the country for vacation. He was in the [Miami International] Airport, and his name came up showing that there was a warrant and they took him into custody,” Schaffer continued.
Although Prince’s attorney attempted to get in touch with prosecutors in Fort Worth, Texas, he was unsuccessful, and Prince had to be in court for a hearing on Friday morning.
“Under Texas law, it’s illegal to carry a gun while engaging in a criminal offense. Because suspected illegal substances were found in his vehicle, we arrested Mr. Prince for Unlawful Carrying of a Weapon and Possession of Marijuana < 2oz ,” said a police spokesman to local news channel KSTP. “Whenever we recover a suspected illegal substance, we’ll send it to a lab for testing to confirm what it is. We did that in this case – and based on the lab results, which just recently came back.”
Update on Taurean Prince: Warrant stems from a traffic stop in Arlington, TX on May 19, 2022. Prince pulled over for expired registration. Prince told officer he had two guns in the car, so officer asked him to step out of car. Prince complied. Cop saw vape pen in car. (THREAD)
— Seth Kaplan 📺 (@Seth_Kaplan) August 26, 2022
Prince was then charged with Possession of a Controlled Substance Penalty Group 2 < 1g and issued a warrant for his arrest, leaving him “very disappointed this is something this officer took upon themselves to do, [it’s] totally unnecessary,” per his attorney.
“It should not have been handled in the manner that it was, it’s totally unnecessary and embarrassing, but we predict that this case is going to be dismissed in due course,” Schaffer said.
The Timberwolves released a statement.
“We are aware of the alleged report regarding Taurean Prince and are in the process of gathering more information.”
Taurean Prince is caught in the gray zone of cannabis and gun possession in the Lone Star State and now his vacation plans are officially curbed.
