Jon Jones has been charged with a pair of misdemeanors following an incident with a drug-testing agent earlier this year.
The undisputed UFC heavyweight champion has been charged with assault, a petty misdemeanor, and interference with communications, a misdemeanor. Per a report from MMA Fighting, Jones’ virtual bond hearing is scheduled on July 17 at 9:15 a.m. in New Mexico. At that time, Jones will be presented with the charges and will be asked to enter his plea. The case will then be set for a bench trial within 30 to 45 days.
If ‘Bones’ is convicted on both full charges, he could face jail time that would equal less than one year, as well as a $500 fine for the petty misdemeanor and up to $1,000 for the misdemeanor.
On March 30, a representative with Drug Free Sport International—later identified as Crystal Martinez—was tasked with collecting a sample from Jones. She claimed that Jones “appeared agitated” after he was unable to provide a urine sample. From there, ‘Bones’ became more aggressive per a police report filed after the incident, alleging that he had taken Martinez’s phone and began recording her and an accompanying agent.
Martinez also told police she was “terrified” with Jones standing less than a foot away from her during the alleged incident and was “afraid Jones might hit her.”
Jon Jones Vehemently Denies Any Wrongdoing in Drug-Testing Incident
After reports of the incident started to hit social media and news sites, Jon Jones issued a statement of his own vehemently denying the accusations.
“I was recently visited by testers while I was celebrating a birthday and taking a nap,” Jones said in April. “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.”
Jones also released security camera footage from the alleged incident which you can see below:
https://x.com/SpinninBackfist/status/1776689637102121283
