University of Georgia wide receiver Roderius “Rara” Thomas has been suspended indefinitely following his Friday morning arrest, according to a team source.
Thomas, who turns 22 on Sunday, was being held without bond Friday afternoon, hours after being charged with second-degree cruelty to children, a felony, and two counts of battery, both misdemeanors, according to Athens-Clarke County police.
At approximately 1:34 a.m., officers were called to the 300 block of Mill Creek Way on a report of domestic violence, according to police Lt. Jody Thompson. Thomas was arrested at the scene and booked into the Athens-Clarke County Jail at 3:20 a.m. Friday.
Because the incident involved a juvenile, police declined to release further details.
The Clarke County magistrate courthouse remained closed Friday following a bedbug infestation.
Thomas was denied bond and a future court date has not been set.
Neither his attorney nor the University of Georgia would comment on the case.
This is not the first time that Thomas has been arrested on a family-violence charge during his time at Georgia. In January 2023, just after transferring from Mississippi State, Thomas was arrested on a misdemeanor count of family violence and a felony count of false imprisonment.
Credit: Clarke County Sheriff's Office
Credit: Clarke County Sheriff's Office
Those charges were dropped in March, with Thomas entering a pretrial diversion program. He also was required to complete anger-management work and community service as part of his deal.
A Eufaula, Alabama, native, Thomas played in 11 games for Georgia last season, catching 23 passes for 383 yards and three touchdowns. Thomas was not suspended after last year’s arrest.
The wide receiver did miss Georgia’s last three games of the 2023 season because of a foot injury. He was expected to be a key contributor for the Bulldogs in the coming season, and possibly a starter for the Bulldogs.
After previous incidents involving his players, Georgia coach Kirby Smart has preferred not to announce publicly any sort of punishments as far as suspensions.
“We don’t talk about the suspensions. We have them,” Smart said last week at SEC Media Days in Dallas. “I think it’s pretty obvious that we’ve done them in the past. You guys know when we do them. Each of those cases is very different and they’ll be handled in different ways.”
Georgia is set to start preseason camp next week. The Bulldogs open the season against Clemson at noon Aug. 31 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
Credit: Jason.Getz@ajc.com
Credit: Jason.Getz@ajc.com
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