Li Angelo Ball and two other UCLA teammates, who were arrested Tuesday in mainland China on suspicion of shop lifting– are now officially ugly Americans who could face between three and 10 years in prison if convicted. The sentencing guidelines could shift depending on the amount that the Chinese could prove was allegedly stolen.
Authorities believe the players shoplifted from a Louis Vuitton store near to the team hotel in Hangzhou. The Bruins are in China as part of a Pac-10 sponsored initiative to play Georgia Tech Saturday in the season opener at Shanghai. The players were arrested Tuesday after 20 members of local law enforcement came to the hotel and questioned both UCLA and Georgia Tech players before taking the three away.
What were these kids thinking?
Obviously, they weren’t and now will be painted as entitled American teenagers with no respect for the laws in a foreign power.
Stealing in China is serious stuff. It is so serious that Lavar Ball, Li Angelo’s normally outspoken father and founder of Big Ballers shoe company who is in China with the team, has been advised by council not to speak and has cancelled a press conference scheduled for today at the team hotel. No one knows what will happen if he challenges the Chinese government.
The three men, who has been ordered by Hangzhou police to remain in the hotel and cannot leave and cannot leave until the legal process is over, which could be days, weeks or months. They could be detained for over a month before prosecutors even decided to press charges, according to William Nee, a Hong Kong researcher and of the Chinese court system for Amnesty International. Nee, speaking to Yahoo.com, said it is not uncommon for a defendant to wait 30-37 days before being officially indicted. Among those indicted Chinese prosecutors enjoy a 99.2 percent conviction rate.
Chinese law calls for a fine and between three and 10 years in prison for anyone convicted of robbing public or private property using force or other methods. The case also could be dropped to a lower administration violation other than robbery, which would lessen the penalties.
No one– the Pac-10 and UCLA– is happy about this incident. The U.S. consulate in Shanghai is working with local authorities to get a resolution, but nothing is certain. If police have solid evidence like CCTV video or the stolen goods discovered from their hotel rooms, their options could be limited., Unless they have instructions from above, the authorities want to prove foreigners are treated equally here.
Denying the charges may not be wise, either. Returning the goods, expressing remorse, admitting guilt and accepting fault and punishment could all reduce sentencing. for a first time offender.
Ball is the younger brother of Lakers guard Lonzo Ball, The other two players are forward Cody Riley of Kansas City and forward Jalen Hill of Corona, Calif.
This is an embarrassing moment for the U.S. consulate on the eve of a trip to China by President Donald Trump and a scared straight situation for the players. The U.S. government will likely need a concerted effort to get the charges reduced. Trump could always beg for mercy from the Chinese president Xi Jinping in an attempt to get the three out of the country. But nothing is a lock in this fluid situation, including whether they will have their scholarships if they do make it to the West Coast..