On Monday night, UFC lightweight champion Conor McGregor was arrested after an incident outside the Fontainebleau Miami Beach hotel where he smashed a cell phone belonging to a fan. Police charged him with felony strong-armed robbery and criminal mischief, according to the Miami Herald .
The incident report indicates that McGregor had become irate when the fan had tried to snap a photo of him on the phone, with the result that he slapped the phone out of the man’s hand before proceeding to aggressively stomp on it. Once done with his sudden outburst, he picked the phone up and took it with him as he walked away.
Police investigating the incident caught up with him later on Monday after being able to identify him on CCTV footage outside the hotel, and he was taken into custody. The 30-year-old was kept at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center.
McGregor was released after posting a $12,500 bond just a few hours later, per MMA Mania , and took to his Instagram account to release a statement to his fans.
“Patience in this world is a virtue I continue to work on. I love my fans dearly. Thank you all,” he wrote in the caption, alongside a photo of himself.
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Plenty of McGregor’s fans took to the comments section of the post, feeling that his apology was somewhat insincere given that he had been arrested for smashing a fan’s phone beyond repair. Others felt that this latest incident is likely the final nail in the coffin of a career that hasn’t seen him win a fight in the ring in years.
McGregor’s legal counsel, Samuel Rabin, also issued a statement about the incident, saying that his client “was involved in a minor altercation involving a cell phone that resulted in a call to law enforcement. Mr. McGregor appreciates the response of law enforcement and pledges his full cooperation.”
The Irish UFC fighter is in Florida undergoing intense training in the hopes of making a solid comeback in his fighting career. Just a few days ago he celebrated his mother’s 60th birthday in the Sunshine State.
It’s not the first time McGregor has gotten into legal trouble over his violent temper outside the ring. Less than a year ago, he was arrested after an incident with fellow UFC fighters, during which he threw a trolley at their bus, attempting to send it through the window. One of the fighters at the scene was injured in the attack.
That incident resulted in felony charges, which were later reduced to a disorderly conduct charge, to which he pleaded guilty. He was ordered to attend three days of anger management classes and perform five days of community service.
He was also involved in an incident in October 2018 after his defeat to Khabib Nurmagomedov, getting into a brawl after the fight that involved his jujitsu coach Dillon Danis.
