TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Authorities say an autistic Florida man trying to make friends on a basketball court was beaten and robbed.
WFTS-TV reports the 22-year-old man approached and explained his disability while playing basketball Sunday in Tampa when he was grabbed by the throat and had his cellphone and shoes stolen.
Hillsborough County deputies said when he tried to recover the items, he was kicked and punched.
Deputies charged 25-year-old Terrell Newton and a 16-year-old accomplice with robbery and abuse of a disabled adult.
Jail documents don’t list a lawyer for Newton.
