Monty Ray Grow, ex-NFL player, accused of leaving 3-year-old girl in the car while going inside a strip club

(CBS/AP) CLEARWATER, Fla. - A former University of Florida and NFL player was arrested after authorities say he left a 3-year-old girl alone in a car while he went into a Clearwater strip club.

The Pinellas County Sheriff's Office reports that 41-year-old Monty Ray Grow was charged with child abuse Sunday night. He was later released on $5,000 bail.

Deputies say Grow went into Diamond Dolls and left the child in the parking lot of a nearby used car dealership. Authorities wouldn't say how Grow knew the girl.

According to CBS affiliate WTSP, authorities say the child's mother had been tracking Grow on her mobile phone's GPS. When she arrived with her parents at the strip club's parking lot they found the girl in the vehicle and immediately removed her.

When Grow returned to the car, he reportedly acknowledged leaving the child unattended. The station reports Grow told investigators he stopped into the strip club only for 20 minutes to collect money on a debt.

Grow played linebacker for the Gators from 1989 to 1993. He went on to play a season each for the Kansas City Chiefs and the Jacksonville Jaguars.