BJ Penn clearly drunk as he’s arrested. I
hope he receives the assistance he needs… pic.twitter.com/5Idv7tXSl7— Michael Morgan (@mikewhoatv)
January 25, 2021
B.J. Penn
had another run-in with the law this past weekend.
According to a report from
MMAFighting.com, the UFC Hall of Famer was arrested on
suspicion of DUI in Honokaa, Hawaii, after police received a
reckless driving complaint. Penn was eventually released after an
investigation, but his blood-alcohol level was not provided.
Additionally, video of what appears to be a belligerent Penn being
guided into a police car surfaced on Monday.
Later, the Hawaii Police Department released further details
regarding the incident. The statement regarding Penn is as
follows:
Jay Penn of Hilo, also known as BJ Penn, was arrested Saturday,
January 23, 2021, for operating a vehicle under the influence of
intoxicants.
About 4:51 p.m. on Saturday afternoon, Hawai‘i Police Department
officers from the Hamakua district responded to a report of a
reckless driver on a business property in Honoka’a.
Upon arriving on scene, police learned through witnesses that Penn
had arrived at the business earlier in a gray Toyota pickup truck.
Prior to police arrival, the 42-year-old was observed talking
loudly towards employees and later drove off the property in a
reckless manner.
While officers were at the scene speaking with the business
employees about the incident, they observed Penn return to the
property. Officers contacted Penn and observing signs of
impairment, arrested him for operating a vehicle under the
influence of intoxicants. Penn was later released pending further
investigation.
Penn was also
investigated for a possible DUI in Hilo, Hawaii, after flipping
his truck in February 2020. The results of Penn’s blood-alcohol
test prompted the investigation, and the ex-fighter was allegedly
at a bar called the Lava Shack prior to the accident.
In December, a
paternity suit was filed against Penn by a woman with whom he
fathered a child in June 2019.
The former UFC champion has been involved in numerous troubling
events in recent months. In August 2019, videos captured Penn in
what appeared to be a bar fight outside Lava Shack. Two months
earlier, Penn was involved in a
fight with a bouncer outside a Hawaii strip club. No arrests
were made in either incident.
Earlier in 2019, Shealen Uaiwa, the mother of Penn’s children,
filed a restraining order against the former champion in which
she accused the ex-champion of verbal, physical and sexual abuse as
well as drug addiction.
Penn last competed at UFC 237, where he dropped a unanimous
decision to Clay Guida for
his seventh consecutive defeat. The 42-year-old Hawaii native was
still supposed to receive one final Octagon bout against Nik Lentz, but
UFC president Dana White decided that Penn was
done competing in the promotion upon seeing the street fight
videos.
Note: This item was updated at approximately 9:58 p.m. ET to
include additional details regarding Penn’s arrest from the Hawaii
Police Department.