A former NBA player and actor has been sentenced to 90 years imprisonment, according to Deadline.
Rashid Byrd, known for his part in the 2008 movie ‘Semi-Pro’, starring Will Ferrell, was found guilty of multiple sexual assaults from 2015-2020 in Los Angeles County following an arrest in 2020.
Byrd, born Rashid Hardwick, has been in prison since his arrest and was being held on $4.15 million bail, with the LAPD launching an investigation in 2019 following a woman reporting him for sexual assault.
“During their investigation, detectives learned [that] in 2020, Byrd was convicted of sexual assault involving a different victim,” an LAPD press release notes. “Detectives also discovered that Byrd had been arrested for sexually assaulting a young woman in Washington State in 2005.”
The department claims that Byrd would use his status as a former basketball player and actor to lure women into meeting with him before assaulting them
“He started as a charmer, playing up his status as an athlete and pseudo-celebrity, but that quickly faded into rapes and violence,” lead investigator Detective Dara Brown said. “The Los Angeles Police Department is grateful for the brace women who came forward to tell their stories.
“While this investigation has gone on for years, we are thankful that Byrd is no longer on the streets.”
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Byrd went undrafted in 2003 and joined the Harlem Globetrotters the following year. He was signed by the Seattle Supersonics – now the Oklahoma City Thunder – in 2005 before moving on to the Detroit Pistons, Los Angeles Lakers, and Sacramento Kings. He represented the CBA’s Shanxi Dragons, as well as the Los Angeles Defenders (now South Bay Lakers) in the G League.
Byrd also featured in 2009’s ‘Bring Your ‘A’ Game’.
