UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones has been arrested for driving while intoxicated, negligent use of a firearm, and possession of an open [alcohol] container, reports Albuquerque news station KOB4.
Jones, 32, was reportedly arrested for the above charges at 1 AM on Thursday morning. According to MMAFighting, Jones has already been released from custody.
The criminal complaint against Jones states, “officers had responded to the area of 3rd Street and Central after hearing gunshots. They noticed a parked vehicle nearby with the engine running. Police say the driver, Jon ‘Bones’ Jones, said he didn’t know anything about the shots fired,” according to KOB4.
Noticing signs of visible intoxication, officers administered several tests on Jones. Jones reportedly “told police he was driving earlier and had the intention to drive again.”
Jones purportedly “performed poorly” on field sobriety tests. Breathalyzer results appeared to show that Jones was “at least twice above the legal limit.”
Following a search of the UFC star’s vehicle, police claimed to have found “a black handgun under the driver’s seat and a half-empty bottle of Recuerdo 750ml behind the passenger seat.”
MMAFighting reports that calls to Jones’ management were not returned.
This is not Jones’ first run-in with the law, nor his first DUI.
In 2012, then-25-year-old Jones was arrested in the early hours of May 19 after crashing his Bentley near his hometown in upstate New York. Jones avoided jail time in the case.
Infamously, in 2015, Jones was involved in a hit-and-run accident involving a pregnant woman. Following the UFC’s decision to strip Jones of his title after the incident, The Guardian wrote, “According to police, witnesses said that Jones ran from a crash on Sunday that hospitalized the pregnant woman but quickly came back to grab “a large handful of cash” from the car.
Authorities say the accident occurred in southeastern Albuquerque when the driver of a rented SUV ran a red light. Officers found a pipe with marijuana in the SUV as well as MMA and rental car documents in Jones’ name, according to the police report.”
Jones again avoided jail time for the incident, receiving 18 months probation after submitting a guilty plea.
Jones, the UFC’s light heavyweight king, is widely regarded as one of the greatest fighters of all time. The multi-time champion and pay-per-view star is riding a four-fight winning streak over the likes of Alexander Gustafsson, Anthony Smith, Thiago Santos, and Dominick Reyes.
The Jackson-Wink fighter most recently defeated Reyes in a controversial decision victory at UFC 247 in February.