Mike Williams, a former NFL wide receiver who played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Buffalo Bills from 2010-2014, tragically died earlier this month after being involved in a construction site accident.
He was 36 years old. it seemed like an open-and-shut case of a tragic accident, but things have changed considerably.
This week, the family of late NFL wide receiver Mike Williams is stating someone brought him the painkiller Percocet to the hospital where he was staying before his death.
Olivia George of the Tampa Bay Times reported the grandmother and mother of Williams’ daughter contacted Tampa police to say they heard an unnamed person brought in drugs to St. Joseph’s Hospital.
“The nature of the crime is under review,” the police department said in an email to the Tampa Bay Times.
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“Three of Williams’ close friends have since shared similar concerns with the Times: That during his stay in the hospital, around the corner from the stadium where he once dazzled roaring crowds as a receiver for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Williams was supplied with drugs by visitors.
Williams’ cause of death is “pending further study,” Chris Wilkerson, spokesperson for the Hillsborough County Medical Examiner’s Office, said in a statement Monday. An initial case summary could not be released because of “an open active criminal investigation,” Wilkerson added.
“I don’t have any information to release and cannot even confirm if this person was in the hospital due to patient privacy laws,” a spokesperson for St. Joseph’s said.”
Williams’ loved ones say they fear that unprescribed drug use could have complicated his recovery from the injury. The former NFL player was brought to the hospital by ambulance and was left partially paralyzed after the accident.
“People are walking around free, and Mike is dead,” his longtime friend David “Phūj” Thornton said. “It is sad if people (who visited Williams) at his bedside didn’t have his best interests.”
Williams was drafted by the Buccaneers in the fourth round of the 2010 NFL Draft. He is perhaps best known for his rookie season with Tampa Bay, when he led the team with 65 catches for 964 yards and a then-franchise-record 11 touchdowns.
He once landed a six-year, $40 million extension ahead of the 2013 campaign.
