Arrest warrant issued for UNK football player related to May 14 violence

KEARNEY, Neb. — Authorities have issued an arrest warrant for a member of the University of Nebraska-Kearney football team.

A district court judge signed a first-degree assault arrest warrant for 23-year-old Xavier Delk on Tuesday. Delk, who is originally from Colorado, had not been arrested yet as of Thursday afternoon. 

Delk is a wide receiver for the Lopers and graduated in May. He has one year of eligibility left.

“We are aware of a pending charge against one of our student athletes related to an off-campus incident May 14,” UNK Sr. Director of Communications Todd Gottula said in a statement. “Xavier Delk has been suspended from all football team activities pending the outcome of the charge. The university continues to cooperate with law enforcement and respect the legal and privacy constraints associated with the case.”

The court has sealed the arrest affidavit, so the details behind the assault charge are scarce. The available court documents accuse Delk of intentionally or knowingly causing serious bodily injury to a man.

The case against Delk is the latest development surrounding an outbreak of violence at a party one bock south of the UNK campus early on the morning of May 14. Police say shots were fired and a man was stabbed during the incident. Officers arrested 19-year-old Marvin Zuniga of Kearney last week for second-degree assault. Court documents accuse him of using a dangerous instrument to injure Delk. Police arrested two unnamed 17-year-olds and a 26-year-old the week before.

Police say there were two subsequent reports of gun shots at the UNK campus in the days following the May 14 incident. Nobody has been hit by the gunfire.