Tristan Warkentin is the Toronto Raptors fan who directed profane language on live TV to Ayesha Curry, the wife of Warriors star guard Steph Curry. In an interview on CP24 with reporter Kelly Linehan, he was asked about the Raptors’ 109-104 loss in Game 2 of the NBA Finals.
“I just wanted to let everyone know,” he said outside at Jurassic Park in Toronto among a group of fans, “Ayesha Curry, we’re going to f—- her in the p——.”
According to the Toronto Sun, Warkentin has now been charged with “mischieff Property” and will make his first appearance in court July 13.
“It is alleged that: A reporter had asked a man to comment regarding the Raptors win,” said a Toronto Police news release. “He was advised it would be broadcast on live TV” and “during the interview he uttered profane phrases.”
Police said the incident happened at 11:10 p.m., at University Ave. and Front St. W.
Here’s what you need to know about the 28-year old and his comments towards Mrs. Curry.
1. He Blames His Comments on Alcohol & Will Reach Out to Apologize to the Curry’s
Warning: This Clip is NSFW.
Joe Warmington of the Toronto Sun tracked down Warkentin for an interview. He first asked how he felt about his actions Sunday night.
“What I did was disgraceful; it was an alcohol-influenced situation,” Warkentin said. “To be honest, I don’t even remember being there but I am responsible for my own actions at the end of the day.”
Warmington then asked if Warkentin plans to apologize to Linehan for putting her in an uncomfortable situation on live television. He decided to focus his apology towards the Curry’s.
When asked if he would apologize to Ms. Linehan, he told me what he planned to do was “reach out to Mr. and Mrs. Curry and that’s realistically who I feel I owe an apology to – and maybe Toronto.”
Despite the charge leveled at him by the Toronto police, Warkentin’s lawyer advised him that “no criminal charges can be laid because of what happened.”
2. Warkentin is an Ottawa-Based Sales Manager
According to his LinkedIn page, Warkentin is a sales manager at the Holiday Inn & Suites Ottawa Kanata. He has held the position for almost five years.
Before that, he studied Business, Management, Marketing and Related Support Services at the Algonquin College of Applied Arts and Technology. He graduated after two years in 2012, indicating that he received an Associate’s degree.
It is unclear if he is still employed by Holiday Inn. While his LinkedIn profile still states that he is, a Toronto-based investigator on Twitter claims that he is a “former” employee.
3. Ayesha Curry a TV Host from Toronto
Just remembered that Ayesha Curry is from Toronto. Makes you wonder who she’s really rooting for.
Ayesha was born in Toronto and has a diverse ethnic background. Ayesha’s mom is Jamaican and Chinese, while her dad is African-American and Polish, per Working Mother.
“Everyone was from a place other than Canada and that’s how you identified yourself, not black or white,” Ayesha explained to Working Mother. “I identified as Jamaican because that’s where my mom came from. In the states I’m simply ‘black.’”
She is also the host of the ABC show Family Food Fight, which is set to debut on June 20. The show features eight families competing using their own family recipes. The show originally launched in Australia before ABC acquired the rights, per Deadline.
The series features eight families competing against one another using their own recipes to vie for the title of “America’s No. 1 Food Family,” with the winner taking home a $100,000 prize. ABC said the show will “focus on relatable, yet aspirational, home-cooked meals, inspiring budding home cooks across the nation to don their aprons and get into the kitchen together.”
4. Several on Twitter Are Asking for Users to Leak His Personal Information, aka “Doxxing”
There are several Twitter users who are asking for Warkentin’s personal information, which is referred to as “doxxing.” According to Kimberly Jolley of US Daily Report, he says that this has led to death threats made towards him.
Twitter’s private information policy threatens bans to users who distribute private information about another user, including:
- home address or physical location information, including street addresses, GPS coordinates or other identifying information related to locations that are considered private;
- identity documents, including government-issued IDs and social security or other national identity numbers – note: we may make limited exceptions in regions where this information is not considered to be private;
- contact information, including non-public personal phone numbers or email addresses;
- financial account information, including bank account and credit card details; and
- other private information, including biometric data or medical records.
5. Fans Have Harassed Players & Their Families More than Once During These NBA Season
The latest on the Kyle Lowry-Mark Stevens situation 💵
Do you think this is a fair punishment for what Stevens did? 🤔 #NBAFinals
Warkentin is the latest in a growing trend of NBA fans who aggressively engaging with players and/or their families. After the Raptors’ Game 3 victory in Oakland, Golden State’s partial owner Mark Stevens shoved Kyle Lowry.
Following the game, Lowry said to ESPN Sports Center,
“If you watch it, he reached over and put his hands on me for no reason…then he said some vulgar words to me…repeated them, repeatedly…In our league, there’s no place for that. You know, honestly, I hope he’s never allowed to come to an NBA [game] again because he shouldn’t have did that…There is no place for that. And you know, luckily, they threw him out. I talked to league security already, and explained myself. The fans have a place; we love our fans. But fans like that shouldn’t be allowed to be in there, because it’s not right. I can’t do nothing to protect myself. But the league does a good job, and hopefully they ban him from all NBA games, ever.”
Stevens has received a 1-year ban from attending NBA games, as well as a $500,000 fine.
In addition, Raptors superfan and rap star Drake has frequently heckled players during these NBA Playoffs. He even received a warning from NBA Commissioner Adam Silver after he gave Raptors coach Nick Nurse a backrub during the Eastern Conference Finals.
Most egregiously, Utah Jazz fan Shane Keisel was permanently banned from NBA games after allegedly racist remarks made towards Russell Westbrook back in March.
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Tristan Warkentin: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know