Ted Wells is adamant that he did not want to take possession of Tom Brady's phone during his investigation of the deflategate scandal.
Brady was suspended for four matches by the NFL for being generally aware that members of the Patriots' equipment staff had deflated footballs in his side's win over the Indianapolis Colts in the AFC championship game.
The 37-year-old's lack of cooperation in regards to his phone and electronic devices was one of Wells's main criticisms of the quarterback in his report, which led to the suspension.
He told reporters: "Mr Brady, the report sets forth, he came to the interview, he answered every question, he did not refuse to answer any questions in terms of the back and forth between Mr Brady and my team - he was totally cooperative.
"At the same time, he refused to permit us to review electronic data from his telephone or other instruments. Most of the key evidence in this case as in most cases comes from people's cell phones and he refused to let us review the phone.
"And I want to be crystal clear, I told Mr Brady and his agents I was willing to not take possession of the phone, I don't want to see any private communications, I said, 'You keep the phone, you give me documents that are responsive to this investigation and I will take your word for it' and they still refused."
Wells also hit back at criticism of his report from Brady's agent, insisting that he was not biased against the quarterback or the Patriots.
Simon Sinclair
