DEDHAM, MASS. (WHDH) – Patriots star wide receiver Stefon Diggs appeared in court Friday to be arraigned on two criminal charges, including strangulation, stemming from an incident involving one of his former employees.
Diggs is accused of attacking his live-in personal chef during a dispute over her pay at his Dedham home in December 2025.
He is charged with felony strangulation or suffocation and misdemeanor assault and battery. During the hearing, which lasted just over one minute, a not guilty plea was entered on his behalf.
According to court paperwork, the private chef told police that Diggs became aggressive during a financial disagreement, during which she said he came into her bedroom, smacked her across the face, and tried to choke her.
Diggs’ legal team filed a motion Friday claiming the former chef deleted some text messages from her IPhone, and only gave police messages that aligned with her report that she was assaulted in a pay dispute.
The document says the deletions were an apparent effort to hide the fact that she had been involved in a dispute with another employee at Diggs’ home, and was in danger of being fired.
The motion asks the court to order the chef, and an unamed company she worked with, to turn over emails and text messages sent between December 2, 2025 and January 9, 2026.
Diggs has denied all of the allegations. After they became public, the Patriots expressed their support for Diggs, saying they were working with authorities and the NFL to gather more information.
Diggs’ Defense Attorney also said he is confident his client will be declared innocent.
“He is completely innocent of these false allegations that have been lodged against him,” said Mitchell Schuster, Diggs’ Defense Attorney. “We are confident that after the facts and evidence have been reviewed, he will be completely exonerated.”
Diggs was released on personal recognizance and ordered to stay away from and have no contact with the victim. He is due back in court in April.
7NEWS reached out to the chef for comment, but has not heard back.
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