REVEALED: Child abuse probe into the Chiefs' Tyreek Hill is 'NOT ACTIVE' six weeks after prosecutors re-opened the investigation when audio emerged of the NFL star 'threatening his fiancee as she accused him of breaking their three-year-old son's arm'

• e-mail

Chiefs wide receiver Tyreek Hill appears to have avoided child abuse charges again 

Six weeks after re-opening the child abuse probe into Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Tyreek Hill, the local district attorney now says there is no active investigation into the NFL star and the mother of his three-year-old son.

In an email to The Kansas City Star, Johnson County District Attorney Steve Howe explained 'it is not an active investigation.'

Howe did not elaborate as to why the investigation was ended or when that decision was made, but he did add, 'if we receiver additional evidence we re-evaluate.'

Hill's attorney Trey Pettlon told the Star that he believes 'the criminal investigation has been closed for quite some time now.'

Pettlon did not immediately respond to the Daily Mail's request for comment.

Howe previously announced on April 26 the investigation into Hill would be re-opened after CBS affiliate KCTV aired secretly-recorded audio of a man identified as Hill threatening his fiancee, who is the mother of his son, when she accused him of hurting the boy.

Hill, 25, has denied hurting his son.  

Tyreek Hill and Crystal Espinal (left) have a three-year-old son, who was reportedly taken from their custody on a temporary basis after two incidents at their home involving a juvenile 

He was first under investigation for an alleged March 14 battery incident involving a juvenile, according to multiple published reports. The Star reported that Hill's son suffered a broken arm in the incident.

Overland Park (Kansas) police responded to the same address on March 5 to investigate a report of child abuse or neglect. Hill's name is listed on the report.

In April it was reported by multiple outlets that the boy had been taken away from Hill and the boy's mother, Espinal.

On April 24, Howe said charges would not be filed but that he was 'deeply troubled' by the situation and said 'we believe a crime has occurred.'

Howe also said the case could be reopened if new information surfaced.

Hill reportedly choked and punched Espinal (right) when she was pregnant in December 2014. Hill was arrested and dismissed from the Oklahoma State football team. He later pleaded guilty to domestic assault and battery by strangulation and received three years' probation

The three-year-old son of Tyreek Hill (left) and Crystal Espinal (right) was temporarily removed from their custody during the first child abuse investigation. The boy's arm was reportedly broken during an incident in March  

Two days later, CBS affiliate KCTV broadcast the aforementioned audio, in which Hill threatens Espinal when she accuses him of hurting their son.

'He is terrified of you,' Espinal can be heard saying in audio that was reportedly recorded at an airport in Dubai.

'You need to be terrified of me, too, b***h,' replied the man on the tape, who is reported to be Hill. That's why you can't keep a f***ing man.'

Howe immediately re-opened the investigation and Hill was suspended indefinitely by the Kansas City Chiefs.

On May 2, The Associated Press published portions of a letter sent from Pettlon to the NFL, in which Hill's attorney claims to have text messages in which Espinal admits to hurting the couple's three-year-old son.

In one exchange, according to Pettlon's letter, Hill tells Espinal after their trip to Dubai: 'Crystal you know I didn't cause any bruising or harm to [our son] but for some reason I still may be charged.'

Espinal allegedly replied: 'I know you didn't. I did. I hurt [our son]. I'm the one that did it. I was hurt and mad at you so I blamed you for everything.'

It is not known of Espinal and Hill are still engaged, nor is it known where their son is currently residing.

Although there is no current criminal investigation into the matter, Hill and Espinal are still involved in a case with the Kansas Department for Children and Families, which is prevented from addressing ongoing cases.

Hill is also subject to an NFL investigation and he can be punished without being convicted or even charged with a crime.

'There is a court proceeding still going on involving CPS, Child Protection Services, and we will not interfere with that,' NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said in May. 'The priority is this young child and so we will obviously be cooperative with whatever the court wants there. We are prepared to go ahead and have an interview whenever we have the permission to.'

The Chiefs are in the midst of offseason workouts, and Hill is barred from attending

In his four-page letter to the NFL, Pettlon insists that his client is devoted to his son.

'He is committed to improving his life and becoming the best parent he can be,' Pettlon wrote in the letter. '... He is very upbeat even through this difficult process, and he's embracing the counseling and the educational aspect to it.'

Although Hill may have avoided criminal charges, the NFL can still punish him 

Hill has been in trouble before.

He was drafted by the Chiefs despite a domestic abuse case in which he attacked Espinal while the two attended Oklahoma State. In 2015, he pleaded guilty to domestic assault and battery by strangulation in connection to the incident, which occurred while Espinal was pregnant.

Hill was kicked off the team at Oklahoma State and wound up at West Alabama. When they drafted Hill in 2016, the Chiefs explained that he was undergoing counseling.

That background, combined with the audio revealed hours before the start of last week's NFL draft, generated a substantial outcry that Hill should be released by the Chiefs. Some have even said Hill, an All-Pro wide receiver, should never play in the NFL again.