A few days ago, Jon Jones was preparing for his upcoming UFC light heavyweight championship fight against Anthony “Rumble” Johnson scheduled for May 23. Now the 27-year-old MMA star is running from reporters after being bailed out of jail.
Jones, who was allegedly involved in a hit-and-run accident on Sunday in Albuquerque, New Mexico, posted $2,500 bail after being arrested on felony charges on Monday. He is accused of fleeing on foot after running a red light and causing a three-car accident.
According to MMAFighting’s Marc Raimondi, witnesses claim Jones ran back to the vehicle to grab a handful of money before running away. Jones was identified on the scene by an off-duty police officer, who also happens to be an avid UFC fan.
Paperwork with the name “Jonathan Jones” on it was found inside the suspect’s vehicle. A marijuana pipe and marijuana were also found.
Vanessa Sonnenberg, a 20-year-old pregnant woman, was inside one of the other vehicles involved in the accident. Her unborn child was reportedly unharmed, but she did suffer a broken arm as a result of the collision, which elevated the misdemeanor hit-and-run charge to felony level.
After turning himself in on Monday, Raimondi reports Jones was booked at 7:11 p.m. local time, per Bernalillo County Metro Detention Center records. He posted bail and was released before 10 p.m. local time.
According to Action 7 news, Vincent Ward, Jones’ attorney, says “his client is in good spirits” and “thinking about his next competition.”
“He wants to get down to training for this big fight that he has. I know obviously he wouldn’t want to be dealing with this right now, but Jon is a great guy. I know he’s taking all of this very seriously,” said Ward.
The UFC released a statement on Sunday acknowledging awareness of the situation. For now, the promotion is still gathering information before making a decision on whether or not to go forth with the UFC 187 main event.
Jordy McElroy is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. He also is the MMA writer for FanRag Sports and co-founder of The MMA Bros.
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