UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones has cleared up false reports suggesting he had been arrested in connection to his alleged assault and threatening of a Drug Free Sport International agent at his home in Albuquerque recently.
"Hello everyone,
I wanted to address some misinformation that has been circulating this morning," Jones said. "I woke up to false reports that I had been arrested. I have not been arrested. In fact, I am currently in Texas with my daughters at a volleyball tournament.
I must admit, it's disappointing to have to clarify these things again, but I understand that I may be an easy target given some of my past issues. it's important to set the record straight and make sure the truth is told.
Jones then went on to reiterate his side of the story and express his disappointment that the false news of his arrest was allowed to circulate without being checked with him.
"I was recently visited by testers while I was celebrating a birthday and taking a nap," Jones stated. "Upon waking up, I was caught off guard by the unprofessionalism and protocol by one of the testers which caused frustration leading me to use some profanity I regret. However, I want to emphasize that at no point did I threaten, get in anyone's face, raise my voice to anyone or engage in any form of assault.
"It's unfortunate that false news has been spread without proper fact-checking. I want to assure you that I will vigorously defend myself against these baseless accusations. The truth is, the incident simply did not occur."
Allegations were made against Jones for assault and disruption of communications following an incident where he reportedly threatened the lives of a drug testing official at his home in Albuquerque. This event was documented in a report by the Albuquerque Police Department.
Crystal Martinez, an agent for Drug Free Sport International—responsible for collecting athlete samples for the UFC’s new anti-doping program—reported to local authorities that she and her colleague Jerome Romero experienced the incident at around 4pm on March 30 when they had visited Jones’s home to obtain a urine sample for testing.
Martinez recounted that Jones, who initially cooperated, grew visibly agitated when he was unable to provide a urine sample on first attempt in which the agent then offered a blood test instead. She then described a "tense and puffed up" Jones as becoming confrontational as he began to ask if they had money as he planned to sue them before taking her phone to record a video.
Martinez claims in her police report that Jon Jones got into her face and said, “why you f***ing people come so early, do you know what happens to people who come to my house… they end up dead.”
Feeling threatened, Martinez says she wanted to terminate the test and leave in that moment but was hesitant as she knew UFC athletes are punished for not complying with testing procedures and did not want to anger the champion further. Despite the tension, Jones eventually attempted another urine test after returning Martinez's phone.
Martinez communicated her concerns to her boss through text whilst Jones was away with Romero trying to provide a sample. Martinez added that she suspected Jones was under the influence of alcohol based on his odor.
After successfully collecting the sample, Martinez and Romero left, with Martinez informing her supervisor of her intention to also file a police report. She expressed her desire to press charges, prompting the police to issue a summons for Jones.
