BOSTON (WHDH/AP) — A drunken man who was arrested and escorted out of TD Garden after allegedly throwing a can of hard seltzer onto the court near the San Antonio Spurs bench during Wednesday night’s Boston Celtics game has been banned from all future events at the arena, officials announced Thursday.
Justin Arnold, 22, of Everett, was arraigned Thursday morning in Boston Municipal Court on a charge of disturbing a public assembly.
Arnold appeared to be intoxicated after he chucked a 20-ounce can of Truly from section 303 in the balcony, Boston police said.
The can landed on the court and sprayed all over the floor “when the crowd started to scrutinize the refs for what appeared to be a terrible call against the Celtics,” according to police.
The can is said to have missed a Spurs player by just a few inches, police said.
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The can was thrown as Celtics guard Kemba Walker argued with a referee. Some players could be seen looking up at the crowd in disbelief.
Arnold was arrested after police reviewed surveillance video and talked to several witnesses.
In a statement, a TD Garden spokesperson said, “Last night, after throwing a can onto the court during a Celtics game, a guest was ejected from TD Garden. The guest was arrested by Boston police and is currently facing criminal charges. This act is a serious violation of our guest code of conduct and as a result, the guest will be banned from all future events at TD Garden, for life.”
Celtics head coach Brad Stevens said he apologized to the Spurs after the game.
“I apologized to the Spurs for what happened out of the stands and that can being thrown,” Stevens told reporters. “I hope that person is not allowed in an NBA arena again.”
Celtics star forward Gordon Hayward added, “I heard it. It was almost a full can. What happened after that, it all happened really fast. It was an unfortunate part of the game for us.”
Police paperwork indicates Arnold is on probation for a prior assault and battery on a police officer.
Officers responding to Papa’s Bar and Grill on Highland Avenue in Malden on the night Dec. 28, 2018, attempted to clear about 300 people out of the bar because the building was at more than double its capacity, an arrest report said.
Arnold allegedly told officers, “I don’t have to go anywhere…I’m not going anywhere,” before resisting arrest and striking one officer on the head. Police wrote in the report that officers had to wrestle Arnold to the ground and use pepper spray to subdue him.
The can-throwing incident remains under investigation.
Arnold is due back in court at a later date.
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