Tony Banks Encountered Gold-Digger From Hell Before Nowitzki

[HPF Bob]

May 14 -- Dallas Mavericks star Dirk Nowitzki was not the first professional athlete to have a tumultuous and bizarre relationship with Cristal Taylor.

Former NFL quarterback Tony Banks on Wednesday told The Dallas Morning News that Taylor is the same woman who tried to turn his life and career upside down in 1997.

When their brief relationship fizzled, Banks said, Taylor began making harassing phone calls to him, his agent and even his St. Louis Rams head coach, Dick Vermeil.

Alarmed that Taylor was "trying to run my name through the mud," Banks notified team security, which learned Taylor had a criminal history and had used multiple identities.

"This is unbelievable," Banks said. "This is wild. I can't believe it's the same chick."

Taylor, a 37-year-old ex-stripper, had been a fugitive for eight years until her arrest on two outstanding warrants last week at Nowitzki's Preston Hollow home.

On Wednesday morning, she was transferred from Dallas County to Beaumont in Jefferson County to face a 2006 felony theft charge. The punishment range is probation up to two years in state jail.

More details here.