Adrien Broner, who currently holds the junior welterweight world title, is facing felony assault and aggravated robbery charges in Cincinnati. Broner is scheduled to defend his title against Ashley Theophane on April 1.
Broner, a Cincinnati native, has two active warrants for his arrest, according to NBC News. TMZ Sports is reporting that the incident went down around 3:30 a.m. on January 21, after Broner and another man had been making bets with each other outside of a bowling alley.
According to TMZ Sports, the alleged victim told police that Broner had lost thousands of dollars in bets, and became frustrated when the alleged victim decided to go home with his winnings off of Broner.
More from TMZ:
According to court docs … Broner “then retrieved a handgun from his vehicle, approached the victim, demanded money, then struck [the victim] in the face with a closed fist a second time, this time causing the victim to be rendered unconscious.”
“Broner was then observed taking money out of the victim’s pockets while he was unconscious before fleeing the scene.”
Officials note that Broner is a pro boxer — and “professionally trained on how to cause serious physical harm to another person.”
We’re told the alleged victim was hospitalized — and needed stitches to close a gash on his chin.
The Cincinnati Enquirer reports that the suit filed says that Broner and the victim had been wagering up to $6,000 per bowling match. Carson allegedly won $8,000 from Broner, before Broner wagered another $6,000 on credit. That’s when Broner allegedly became upset after losing $14,000, and the victim declined to take another wager.
The victim, Christopher Carson, was allegedly punched twice by a gun-in-hand Broner, which split his chin open and knocked him out. $12,000 was then taken from Carson.
Broner did not give comment on the situation to TMZ, but did post a direct message exchange with ESPN’s Dan Rafael on his Instagram account:
Per ESPN, a PBC spokesman said, “It’s a legal situation that Broner is going to have to work out with his attorney.”
Although Broner appears to be taking the situation lightly, the fight is seriously in jeopardy. Leonard Ellerbe, CEO of Mayweather Promotions, who promotes Ashley Theophane, claims that he was not aware of the details of the situation, and said that Broner would need to deal with an attorney, according to ESPN.
[NBC News, TMZ, Cincinnati Enquirer, ESPN]
