Former Colts lineman and The Fan Radio host Joe Stasniak faces several criminal charges

Former Indianapolis Colts lineman and radio personality Joe Stasniak has been arrested on several preliminary charges, including domestic battery and brandishing a firearm, for allegedly punching his son and choking his son’s friend.

Stesniak, 56, was arrested by deputies and booked just before 2 a.m. Tuesday, according to online Hendricks County Jail records. He was also initially charged with intimidation and strangulation.

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Deputies were called to Stesniak’s home just before midnight Monday night, according to a probable cause affidavit detailing his arrest. A deputy said in court records that a friend of Stesniak’s son reported the pair were inside a car when Joe Stesniak opened the door, grabbed her by the hood as she tried to remove her from the Jeep and began choking her. Stesniak’s son and friend — both over the age of 18 — told deputies they had been punched.

The friend told authorities Stesniak “pulled a gun” during the conversation, the affidavit said.

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During an interview with deputies, Stesniak said her neighbors reported a suspicious vehicle parked in her front yard, so she tried to open several car doors, opened the back door and found her son inside. Stesniak told investigators he grabbed his son’s friend by the hoodie “to get his attention,” adding that he told the couple he was carrying his firearm, but denied ever pointing the gun or touching them with it. He also denied hitting his son’s friend.

Deputies said in the affidavit that Stesniak told them his gun was inside the glovebox of his car, where investigators found a Smith and Wesson revolver.

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Stesniak has worked for Emmys Communications for more than two decades, starting with WIBCand co-hosted Fan morning show Before leaving in 2021. In June 2020, he was suspended without pay for a week after broadcasting that black people must stop being victims, kneeling in front of the American flag was treasonous, and that the Confederate flag was not racist. He also said he finds it hard to believe that black people are being targeted by the police.

The story continues

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The comments came amid discussions about protests in Indianapolis and the country following the killing of George Floyd, who died after a former Minneapolis police officer kneeled on Floyd’s neck for nearly nine minutes during a street confrontation. .

Stesniak had not been formally charged as of Tuesday afternoon.

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Contact Sarah Nelson at 317-503-7514 or [email protected]

This article originally appeared in the Indianapolis Star: Former Indianapolis Colts lineman ‘Big Joe’ Stesniak faces charges