Police investigate ‘homophobic death threats’ sent to WNBA star Breanna Stewart’s wife
By Ben Church, CNN
(CNN) — The New York Police Department (NYPD) is investigating “homophobic death threats” sent to New York Liberty star Breanna Stewart’s wife, Marta Xargay, via email after Game 1 of this year’s WNBA Finals.
Stewart told ESPN’s NBA Today on Tuesday that the message was sent to Xargay, a former WNBA player, and that she and her wife had made the Liberty and league aware of the situation.
The NYPD told CNN in a statement that it was aware of the incident: “On Sunday, October 13, 2024, at approximately 1815 hours, an email was sent to a relative of a WNBA player with a threatening message. The investigation is ongoing.”
Stewart, a two-time WNBA MVP, had the chance to win Game 1 of the Finals for New York but missed one of two free throws at the end of regulation and then was off-target with a layup at the end of overtime. The Minnesota Lynx ended up winning the opener but the series is now tied at 1-1 ahead of Game 3 on Wednesday.
“Sometimes, people are taking things a little bit too far and too out of context and Marta had gotten homophobic death threats,” Stewart told NBA Today’s Malika Andrews.
“A few other things have happened but just making sure that we’re doing as much as possible to continue to make sure that our team and the league is aware of the situation and continue to keep everybody safe,” she said.
In a statement, a WNBA spokesperson told CNN the league will “continue to emphasize that there is absolutely no room for hateful or threatening comments made about players, teams or anyone affiliated with the WNBA.”
They added: “We’re aware of the most recent matter and are working with league and team security as well as law enforcement on appropriate security measures.”
CNN has reached out to the Liberty for comment.
The email comes amid a worrying rise of social media abuse directed at those playing in the WNBA.
Connecticut Sun veteran Alyssa Thomas spoke out following the franchise’s first-round series win against the Indiana Fever, saying, “I think in my 11-year career I’ve never experienced the racial comments from the Indiana Fever fan base.
“I’ve never been called the things that I’ve been called on social media and there’s no place for it,” Thomas added.
Last month, Sun guard DiJonai Carrington received backlash after accidentally colliding with Fever star Caitlin Clark during the series. Both Clark and Carrington denied that there was any malicious intent behind the incident.
Carrington’s girlfriend, Indiana player NaLyssa Smith, detailed some of the treatment Carrington had been subjected to.
“My girlfriend has been getting death threats, followed, called all type of sh*t,” Smith posted to X, formerly known as Twitter.
Thomas added after the Sun’s first-round victory: “We come to play basketball for our job and it’s fun, but we don’t wanna go to work every day and have social media blown up over things like that.”
Asked about the rise in abuse, Stewart said she wanted to use her platform to raise awareness.
“Why is this happening? Because we are the most inclusive league in all of professional sports and I can say that with confidence. But there’s no place for hate,” Stewart added Tuesday.
“We want to continue to make sure that not only am I using this platform to make sure that we’re keeping it consistent and really putting the pressure on the league to keep us safe.
“But knowing this is happening, not only in this league but really around the world, it’s unacceptable.”
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