Three UCLA Basketball Players Unable to Leave Hotel in China After Being Accused of Shoplifting

Alexia Fernandez
Updated

Three UCLA basketball players cannot leave their Chinese hotel after being arrested for allegedly shoplifting.

LiAngelo Ball, Cody Riley and Jalen Hill were arrested this week for allegedly shoplifting sunglasses from a Louis Vuitton store in Hangzhou, according to The Washington Post.

In a statement to PEOPLE, UCLA said, “We are aware of a situation involving UCLA student-athletes in Hangzhou, China. The University is cooperating fully with local authorities on this matter, and we have no further comment at this time.”

Ball is the younger brother of Los Angeles Lakers rookie Lonzo Ball. While the three athletes remained in Hangzhou, the rest of UCLA’s Bruins basketball team continued their trek to Shanghai to play Georgia Tech on Friday.

<strong>LiAngelo Ball</strong>
LiAngelo Ball

The Post reported the team’s coach, Steve Alford, had stayed in Hangzhou until his players were released. He told the newspaper the three players would not be playing in Friday night’s game.

Chinese law enforcement has up to 37 days to decide whether to obtain official approval for an arrest, the Los Angeles Times.

<strong>Jalen Hill</strong>
Jalen Hill
<strong>Cody Riley</strong>
Cody Riley

Ball’s parents, LaVar and Tina Ball, are currently in China filming episodes of their Facebook reality show, Ball in the Family, which has already been picked up for a second season, according to the Post.

“He’ll be fine. He’ll be fine,” LaVar told ESPN while referring to his son. “Everybody is making it a big deal. It ain’t that big of a deal.