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Former NFL defensive tackler Junior Siavii died in his prison cell at the age of 43. Siavii was being held at United States Penitentiary in Leavenworth while awaiting trial on federal gun and drug trafficking charges.
He was found unresponsive in his cell and was rushed to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Officials did not release any details about the cause of his death.
Siavii was arrested in 2019 on illegal gun charges after getting into an altercation with police in Kansas City. Police said he was seen exiting a vehicle that had been reported stolen. Officers had to tase him multiple times in order to subdue him. They found a gun, ammunition, methamphetamine, and marijuana in his possession at the time of the arrest.
He was later named in a criminal indictment as being part of a methamphetamine drug trafficking conspiracy in Missouri involving eight other individuals.
The Kansas City Chiefs picked Siavii with their second-round pick in the 2004 NFL Draft. After two seasons, Siavii left the NFL because of knee injuries. He returned to the league in 2009 to play for the Cowboys and was cut before the start of the 2010 season. He then signed with the Seattle Seahawks but was forced to retire in 2011 because of a spinal cord injury.