Three UCLA men’s basketball players detained in China over allegations of shoplifting this week will not be on the team’s return flight to the United States on Saturday.
The three students – freshmen LiAngelo Ball, Cody Riley and Jalen Hill – will remain in Hangzhou for a week or two, ESPN reported on Saturday, citing unnamed sources.
Ball, Riley and Hill were questioned about alleged stealing from a Louis Vuitton store during the team’s visit to Hangzhou, home of the game’s sponsor, Alibaba.
The three freshman basketball players are reportedly confined to Hyatt Hotel in Hanzhou, China (pictured)
Chinese authorities have up to 37 days to decide whether to pursue official approval for a formal arrest, Margaret Lewis, a law professor at Seton Hall University in New Jersey who researches China’s legal system, told the Los Angeles Times.
Louis Vuitton sunglasses, according to the brand’s website, range from $400 to $2,000.
They were taken into police custody on Tuesday morning and released early on Wednesday, a source told Reuters.
It’s unclear which sunglasses the players are accused of stealing, but these ‘Mascot’ frames run for $775
The players have been confined to their hotel in Hangzhou, and did not accompany the team when it traveled to Shanghai for its season-opener against Georgia Tech, which UCLA won 63-60.
Ball, the younger brother of National Basketball Association rookie Lonzo Ball of the Los Angeles Lakers, declined to comment when reached by phone at his hotel on Wednesday. The others could not be reached.
Sources told Reuters that police had released the three on condition they remain at their hotel during the legal process.
Often China will deport foreigners suspected of having committed relatively minor offenses.
LaVar Ball, LaMelo Ball and LiAngelo Ball pose for a portrait with Lonzo Ball after being drafted number two overall to the Los Angeles Lakers
Often China will deport foreigners suspected of having committed relatively minor offenses.
The U.S. State Department and UCLA Athletics officials have declined to say how long legal proceedings might take.
‘There is a lot of uncertainty around how long they will need to be in that position before there’s some update on the situation,’ said one of the sources, who declined to be identified due to the sensitivity of the situation.