The Albuquerque Police Department on Monday issued a warrant for the arrest of UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones on felony charges for Jones’ alleged role in a hit-and-run automobile accident this past weekend in Albuquerque, NM.
According to a release issued by the department, “arrangements” are in place for Jones to turn himself in. The official warrant for Jones’ arrest can be viewed here and at the bottom of this page.
Reports filed by Detective Tommy Benavidez of the Albuquerque Police Department indicate that Jones is a primary suspect in a hit-and-run accident that took place Sunday afternoon. According to witnesses, a silver Buick driven by a man believed to be Jones allegedly ran a red light and caused a three-car accident that left a pregnant woman with a broken arm.
The man allegedly fled the scene on foot, before returning to retrieve cash from his vehicle then fleeing once more. A pipe with marijuana inside of it was found within the rental vehicle by officers, along with paperwork with the name “Jonathan Jones” affixed in relation to MMA and Nevada. Off-duty police officer J. Sullivan identified the man as Jones, stating on the report, “I watch UFC all the time, I know what Jon Jones looks like.”
Representatives from the Albuquerque Police Department made several attempts to contact Jones throughout Sunday and Monday since the incident. As a result of the injuries caused by the collision, felony charges have been attached to the initial hit-and-run.
Jones, 27, is at this writing still scheduled to defend his light heavyweight belt against Anthony “Rumble” Johnson on May 23 at UFC 187 in Las Vegas.
The UFC said in a statement Sunday that it would await details of the case before rendering judgement. Nevada Athletic Commission executive director Bob Bennett echoed that sentiment to MMAFighting.com on Monday.
“We’d be keeping an eye on any unarmed combatant alleged to be in an incident such as this,” Bennett said.