Report: Law enforcement official sent NFL Ray Rice tape

NFL security chief Jeffrey Miller was sent a physical copy of a videotape showing former Ravens running back Ray Rice punching his then-fiancee in a casino elevator, according to a report from the Associated Press.

The AP, citing an anonymous law enforcement official, claims Miller received the tape through the mail, though the source is unsure if Miller himself opened the package. However, the law enforcement official, according to the report, received a 12-second voicemail from a woman at the NFL office that said, "You're right. It's terrible."

The law enforcement official was not authorized to send the tape on to anyone, the report states.

Miller issued a statement to the AP.

"I unequivocally deny that I received at any time a copy of the video, and I had not watched it until it was made public on September 8," Miller said.

The NFL, and specifically commissioner Roger Goodell, has received a lot of heat for the handling of the Rice case. Rice was initially given a two-game suspension, which drew outrage publicly, since a first video showing Rice dragging his then fiancee and now wife, Janay Rice, out of the elevator seemed more serious than the consequences from the league. Rice has since been released by the Ravens and is suspended indefinitely.

Goodell has since admitted he got the initial punishment wrong, but is under fire as it's been alleged that the NFL had access — or at minimum, should have had access — to the second Rice tape showing the 207-pound running back punching a woman.

Follow me on Twitter: @JasonHButt

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