More details are emerging regarding the incident that resulted in former NFL quarterback Mark Sanchez being stabbed and then arrested in Indianapolis over the weekend, while preparing to call Sunday’s game between the Raiders and Colts.
Via the probable cause affidavits supporting the arrest, as explained by Jade Jackson of the Indianapolis Star, the victim was a 69-year-old truck driver who had parked a work box truck at a loading dock to collect used cooking oil from a hotel kitchen.
The altercation began, via the story posted by Michaela Springer of WISHTV.com, when Sanchez told the driver that he couldn’t stop his truck where it was parked. Sanchez added that he had spoken to the manager of the hotel. The victim said he would call his own manager to figure out what was happening.
Sanchez then climbed up into the cab of the truck. He leaned over the driver’s seat, and he looked in toward the middle area between the seats.
The victim told Sanchez he wasn’t allowed inside the truck. Sanchez, who per the victim smelled of alcohol and slurred his words, “kept repeating that he had spoken to a manager, and they did not want [victim] to [replace the fryer oil].”
Security footage shows that Sanchez followed the victim as he walked around the truck and attempted to get the attention of a hotel security guard. Sanchez then blocked the victim’s effort to get inside the truck. The surveillance footage shows Sanchez shoving the victim backward.
From the quotes in the article published by the Star, Sanchez was seen throwing the victim against a wall and then to the ground.
At one point, the victim sprayed Sanchez in the face with pepper spray. From the affidavit: “The pepper spray appeared to have an effect on Mr. Sanchez for a moment, but [he] wiped his face and again advanced toward [the victim].”
The victim then became fearful that Sanchez would kill him. He reached for his knife and stabbed Sanchez “two or three times” in the chest. Sanchez reacted with a “look of shock” and left the scene.
For his part, Sanchez told police he didn’t recall what happened after grabbing for a window. He said while being interviewed in the hospital that he didn’t know who had stabbed him or where it had happened.
Sanchez, who was hospitalized with critical injuries, was arrested on three misdemeanors: battery with injury, unlawful entry of a motor vehicle, and public intoxication. The victim was not arrested.
“This incident should never have happened,” Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears said, per the Star. “What began as a disagreement between a 38-year-old former professional athlete and a 69-year-old man should not have escalated into violence or left anyone seriously injured. As with any case, we will follow the facts and the law wherever they lead.”
Saturday’s statement from the Indianapolis police department emphasized that the ultimate decision as to whether Sanchez will face formal charges will be made by the prosecutor’s office.
