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Saquon Barkley’s father, Alibay, arrested with a loaded firearm during traffic stop, NYPD says

“We keep it for safety because of who my son is,” Alibay Barkley told police during the traffic stop.

Alibay Barkley (back right) faces felony charges for a possession of a loaded firearm during a traffic stop in New York on Wednesday.
Alibay Barkley (back right) faces felony charges for a possession of a loaded firearm during a traffic stop in New York on Wednesday.Read moreJoe Hermitt/PennLive.com via AP

Alibay Barkley, the father of Eagles running back Saquon Barkley, was arrested following a traffic stop Wednesday night in New York City and faces felony charges including criminal possession of a loaded firearm, police said.

Police stopped a Chevrolet Corvette for an obstructed license plate that did not match the vehicle, and an investigation determined Alibay Barkley, 55, was in possession of the firearm and that the vehicle was unregistered, according to a spokesperson for the NYPD’s deputy commissioner of public Information office.

“That is my wife’s gun,” Alibay Barkley, who lives in Whitehall, Pa., told police, according to the complaint obtained by WABC-TV and the New York Post.

“We keep it for safety because of who my son is and because we come back to the Bronx to visit a lot.”

Alibay Barkley was released on bail Thursday and has an appearance scheduled for Tuesday in Bronx Supreme Criminal Court, according to records, which also show a separate felony weapon possession charge from a previous conviction.

Alibay Barkley told ESPN in 2018 that he spent nearly a year inside Rikers Island for violating probation with an arrest for possessing an unlicensed gun while he was a teenager.

Saquon Barkley was born in the Bronx before his family moved to Pennsylvania and eventually settled in Coplay as he starred in football for Whitehall High School and then later at Penn State.

He was a Pro Bowl running back for the New York Giants during his six seasons before signing a three-year, $37.75 million deal with the Eagles in March.

His representation didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.