San Francisco 49ers wideout Deebo Samuel has warned fans against secretly recording NFL players in public after opening up on the dangers of doing so.
Samuel’s passionate plea comes a few days after his new 49ers teammate and fellow receiver Ricky Pearsall was shot in downtown San Francisco on Saturday night.
Pearsall, the 23-year-old rookie selected by the Niners in the first round of this year’s NFL Draft, took a bullet to the chest after being targeted for his Rolex watch in the city’s Union Square area. He was rushed to hospital before eventually being released Sunday.
In light of the shocking incident, Samuel has claimed football fans are putting players in danger by filming them in their day-to-day lives without consent, urging them to ‘think about the person you a recording’ in a video message on Instagram.
49ers wideout Deebo Samuel has warned fans against secretly recording NFL players in public
Samuel’s passionate plea comes a few days after his new 49ers teammate and fellow receiver Ricky Pearsall was shot in downtown San Francisco on Saturday night
‘I don’t think y’all people actually know how dangerous it is that y’all be recording people while they out eating and posting it,’ the 28-year-old said. ‘Like, do y’all actually think this is actually safe to be doing?
‘Start thinking about the person you are recording, think about their privacy, think about their wellbeing, because at any point anybody can pull up and… this world ain’t but so big. Anybody can pull up and do whatever they want.
‘I just advise y’all to respect people’s privacy.’
Deebo, who is about to enter his sixth season with the Niners after being selected in the second round of the 2019 draft, pleaded with the public to ask them politely for photos instead of recording them from afar.
‘Come and ask for a picture politely,’ he continued. ‘Be like, “Excuse me, I know you’re eating [but] do you mind taking a picture?” Something like that, don’t just be trying to hide [and] record.
‘There’s too much going on in the world. There’s just too much going on and you don’t know what people’s intentions are like.’
Pearsall has been released from hospital after being targeted for his Rolex watch and shot
Samuel claims fans are putting NFL players in danger by filming them from afar in public
A 17-year-old suspect is believed to have been trying to rob Pearsall of his Rolex watch before a struggle ensued and both of them were shot in Union Square.
Police immediately apprehended the suspect, who was not wearing shoes after losing them at the scene of the attack. They remained in custody as of Monday night and face potential charges this week.
Following his release from hospital, a San Francisco police sergeant has revealed Pearsall’s harrowing first words after he was shot on Saturday.
Via NBC Bay Area, Sgt. Joelle Harrell said: ‘He looks at me and he’s like, “Am I gonna die?” I’m just like, “No.”
‘I take off my hat because I wanted to make eye contact with him. I wanted him to hear me. I said to him, “Listen, look at me. I know you don’t know me, but I want you to trust me, it’s not your time.”‘
