Freshman running back Tirek Murphy was arrested by Purdue police on preliminary charges of possession of marijuana Saturday morning before the Boilermakers' opening game.
The four-star recruit was stopped by police while driving without his headlights on at 1 a.m. on Saturday, according to Capt. Song Kang. Police stopped him and reportedly smelled marijuana as they approached the vehicle, Kang said. Police then searched the vehicle and reportedly found about 30 grams of marijuana inside.
He was not under the influence at the time, Kang said.
Murphy was issued a citation rather than being detained, but "from a legal standpoint, it's the same thing," Kang said. Murphy will still have to appear in court and can be charged officially by prosecutors.
Murphy did not see the field on Saturday, according to the box score, but it's unclear if he didn't play because of this incident or another reason.
As for why Murphy was cited and not detained, Kang said it "depends on the circumstances."
He also said that PUPD doesn't want to take people to jail for minor offenses "under the COVID system."
Purdue Athletics said in an email that the department "is aware of the situation and will address accordingly."
According to previous Exponent reporting, Purdue administers drug tests for marijuana randomly throughout the year. If a student-athlete tests positive, punishment could range from a meeting with the sports medicine director to a partial or full suspension and rehab process.
Purdue Athletics did not offer specifics about a policy for student-athletes who are cited or arrested for drug violations.
