ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – A man arrested Tuesday is accused of attacking a referee weeks earlier at a high school basketball tournament in Winter Garden where he had been one of the coaches, according to police.
Alvin Pegues Jr., 37, faces a charge of aggravated battery on a sports official during or after a contest, records show.
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According to an affidavit for his arrest warrant, Pegues was the coach for Windermere High School during a basketball tournament on Feb. 1 at Foundation Academy in Winter Garden.
Over the course of a game between Windermere and Cypress Creek high schools, a witness told police that Pegues “got into it” with the referee he’s accused of later attacking.
The witness told police that Pegues was arguing over calls and saying inappropriate things, what the affidavit states eventually led to the referee issuing Pegues two technical fouls; though police were told Pegues should have been ejected after the second foul, he was allegedly allowed to stay because no one else from Windermere High was around to finish the game.
After the game, near the locker rooms, multiple witnesses told police that Pegues approached the referee and pushed him through a locker room’s doors, according to the affidavit. Now on the ground, the referee was allegedly pinned by Pegues, who punched him several times in the face before other people could get Pegues off, the affidavit states.
Pegues had already left the school’s campus when police arrived. He was arrested during a traffic stop early Tuesday in the area of W. Colonial and Mercy drives and has since bonded out, records show.
Orange County Public Schools provided the following statement to News 6:
Alvin Pegues was in his first year as a non-faculty coach at Windermere High School. The Office of Professional Standards opened an investigation into the incident and the individual was immediately placed on administrative leave, he then resigned back in March.
Orange County Public Schools Media Relations