A WITNESS has relived the moment bloodied ex-NFL player Mark Sanchez pounded on the windows of his bar and begged for help following an alleyway brawl.
The 38-year-old player-turned color commentator is facing charges after he was stabbed during a fight that broke out in Indiana on Saturday morning.
GettyNFL quarterback turned broadcaster Mark Sanchez has been arrested and accused of assault following an alleyway brawl[/caption]
FOX59Bartender Scott Bennett said the bloodied player banged on the windows of his pub and begged for help[/caption]
Sanchez is accused of throwing a 69-year-old driver into a dumpster after the two got into a tiff over his truck blocking an alleyway in Indianapolis, court documents seen by Fox affiliate WXIN reveal.
The victim told police that he smelled alcohol on the former player’s breath before the fight and stabbed him because he feared for his life, arrest documents state.
After the attack, Sanchez stumbled toward the Loughmiller’s Pub & Eatery at around 12:30 am and started beating on the windows, Scott Bennett, who was closing the shop, told WXIN.
“I looked and saw that the person needed help and went outside, and the person had blood on him, and he said that he’d been shot,” said Bennett.
The bartender said that staff rushed Sanchez inside, called 911, and shoved towels over his bleeding injuries.
Bennett doesn’t remember hearing gunfire before the player came in.
He said that Sanchez was gushing blood from his chest, abdomen, and crotch region.
“I was trying to talk to him a little bit, tried to get his name, couldn’t really understand what he was saying,” Bennett said.
“I didn’t recognize him at all.”
Bennett said that he didn’t notice any signs of the former football player being inebriated at the time.
The driver was working to collect used grease from restaurants when he was confronted by Sanchez, police documents state.
A source who spoke with WXIN claimed the ex-quarterback was angry at the driver for blocking the alley.
Sanchez acted erratically before the attack, and, at one point, was even doing wind sprints, the source said.
The driver told police that he used pepper spray on Sanchez and pulled the knife when it didn’t seem to stop him.
The ex-NFL player told cops in the hospital that he didn’t remember the incident, and only recalled “grabbing a window.”
WISH-TVCops raced to the scene following the fight[/caption]
CBS4Bloody fingerprints were left smudged on the side of the pub[/caption]
PLAYER CHARGED
Bloody handprints were left on the pub window following Saturday morning’s attack, and a trail of drips stained the nearby alleyway.
According to court documents, detectives obtained surveillance footage to corroborate the driver’s story.
Sanchez was in town to broadcast the Indianapolis Colts and Las Vegas Raiders game on Sunday with Fox Sports.
He was initially charged with public intoxication, battery resulting in bodily injury, and unauthorized entry of a motor vehicle.
On Monday, one of the charges was updated to felony battery.
He bonded out on $300 and is due in court for an initial hearing on Tuesday morning.
Fox Sports broadcaster Charissa Thompson issued a statement ahead of the game that Sanchez was set to cover.
“Friday night in Indianapolis, one of our team members Mark Sanchez, was involved in an incident that we are still trying to wrap our heads around,” she said.
“At this time, our thoughts and prayers are with Mark, his family and all of those involved.”
Sanchez played in the NFL from 2009 to 2018 and spent most of his career with the New York Jets.
He started broadcasting with ESPN soon after announcing his retirement in 2019.
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