Former NFL Player Accused of Vandalizing His Own Business with ‘MAGA’ and Racist Slurs

A former NFL player has been arrested in Georgia for vandalizing his own business with racist slurs and the phrase “MAGA,” to make it appear as if Trump supporters and racists attacked him.

Former Washington Redskins tackle Edawn Coughman, 31, was arrested in Gwinnett County, Georgia, on September 11 after someone reported the vandalism of his small restaurant.

NEW: Former NFL player turned business owner Edawn Coughman was arrested for allegedly vandalizing his own business, staging a hate crime possibly for insurance money. Gwinnett Police say they found spray paint in his truck, a crow bar, and the spraypainted slurs were still wet. pic.twitter.com/a5UUFdNsTY

— Hayley Mason (@HayleyMasonTV) September 13, 2019

Coughman owns the Create and Bake pizza restaurant and Coughman’s Creamery in Lawrence, an establishment that police found damaged after a citizen reported that the establishment was being broken into and deface, according to 11 Alive.

When police arrived, they observed Coughman driving away from the place in a black Chevy Silverado. When they pulled him over, officers discovered a number of flatscreen TVs still on brackets in the truck’s bed. The TVs appeared to have been ripped from the walls of the restaurant.

Meanwhile, other officers discovered that Coughman’s establishment had been seriously vandalized with “MAGA” spray painted on the walls several times along with racial epithets.

Seating booths were also sliced up, mirrors were broken, and a security system was disabled and destroyed.

Police obtained a search warrant and found in the truck the same color spray paints used in the damage as well as a prybar that matched the paint color of a device used to break open the restaurant’s back door.

Coughman had a less than stellar NFL career having been signed between 2012 and 2016 by eight pro teams but never playing a regular season game with any of them. He was even dumped by a Canadian football team.

Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston.