One of the Bengals' offseason additions has left the team while authorities search for his father and found himself in legal trouble.
Cornerback Mackensie Alexander departed training camp Tuesday as the Okeechobee County (Florida) Sheriff's Office searches for his father, Jean Odney Alexandre, who disappeared Monday while on a berry-picking trip, NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reported.
On Tuesday night, the Bengals cornerback was arrested on one count of misdemeanor battery in Florida, per the Collier County Sheriff's Office. Pelissero reported a Florida judge granted Alexander his release from jail on $2,000 bond or pretrial release following a Wednesday hearing, according to one of his attorneys, Brian Pakett.
Alexander, who allegedly confronted the man who left his father behind on the trip, should be out soon and intends to rejoin authorities' search for his father, Pelissero added.
"Mackensie's a loving son, and he's concerned about his father. That is his sole concern in the matter," Alexander's attorneys, Brian Pakett and Stacey Richman, said in a statement obtained by Pelissero. "The only concern that Mackensie has right now is finding his father and the well-being of his father."
Alexandre, 65, traveled to northwest Okeechobee County with another man Monday to pick palmetto berries somewhere on the prairie, and the accompanying man left him behind, Pelissero reported, per the sheriff's office. The Collier County Sheriff's Office has now taken over the investigation, Pelissero reported.
Alexandre was reported missing to the Collier County Sheriff's Office late Monday night and Collier County subsequently contacted the Okeechobee office, according to the Okeechobee County Sheriff's website. Deputies and K-9 teams, the Florida Wildlife Commission and St. Lucie County Sheriff's Office helicopters are searching for Alexandre.
"I can tell you that we have helicopter and ground searches in Okeechobee County that will be going on through the night," the Collier County Sheriff's Department said in a statement obtained by Pelissero.
Alexander, 26, joined the Bengals as a free agent during the offseason after spending his first four professional seasons with the Minnesota Vikings. The Immokalee, Florida, native is expected to start opposite William Jackson III in Cincinnati's secondary.
Anyone with information on the whereabouts of Jean Odney Alexandre can call 863-763-3117.
