England rugby star Billy Vunipola was involved in a bizarre incident in Spain. Photo: X
PICS: England rugby star downplays arrest in Spain [UPDATE]
Pictures have emerged of the incident that saw England rugby international Billy Vunipola clash with police in Spain.
England rugby star Billy Vunipola was involved in a bizarre incident in Spain. Photo: X
*Note: This is an updated article on the incident involving England rugby star Billy Vunipola
On Monday, it was confirmed by police that Vunipola had been arrested in Spain. Local reports said the burly England loose forward had been threatening customers and employees before police arrived on the scene.
However, Vunipola has denied making threats, and suggested it was not a “violent” incident and that he had not thrown “bottles or chairs or anything else”.
You can see more pictures of the incident published by The Sun newspaper here
“I can confirm I was involved in an unfortunate misunderstanding when I was leaving a club in Mallorca on Sunday, which got out of hand,” he said in a statement. “Contrary to media reports, there was no violence, no fight and I did not threaten anybody at any stage, with bottles or chairs or anything else.
“I was charged with resisting the law and, following an ‘express trial, I have paid a fine of €240. The Spanish police investigation is now closed, and I am flying back to the UK today. I will obviously cooperate with the Saracens internal process and unreservedly apologise for any inconvenience to all involved.”
Following calls from security staff, the Daily Mail reports that police rushed to a bar called Epic in the island capital Palma at 4.30am on Sunday morning.
A subsequent police statement from a police spokesman read: “In the early hours of [Sunday] morning, at 4.30am, we arrested a 31-year-old foreign man on suspicion of a crime of disobedience and assaulting a police officer.
“The events took place in a leisure establishment on the seafront in Palma, when a man was causing altercations inside the establishment.
“The man would not listen to reason and confronted the rest of the customers, and the security staff were unable to restrain him or remove him from the premises.
“The police were alerted and the officers, on seeing the man, who was shirtless and making gestures with his hands, cleared the premises. It was then that he confronted the police and attempted to assault the officers.
“The police officers tried at all times to get him to calm down, but the man would not listen to reason. At that moment, the man pushed and slapped an officer and a policeman pulled out his electric stun gun and fired a first time although the gun didn’t discharge.
“It hit him in his wallet which meant it didn’t discharge as it hadn’t hit his muscles. The two prongs have to land on someone’s body to send out electricity and because the wallet got in the way the stun gun didn’t discharge.
“A second projectile was then fired, which did the job, and it was then that the officers jumped on him and proceeded to immobilise him by shackling him, later taking him to Son Espases hospital for assessment and arrest.
“[On Sunday] afternoon he was taken to court and released on bail pending an ongoing investigation.”
Multiple news outlets had reported how as many as eight police officers eventually restrained him before being taken to Son Espaces hospital where he was sedated and bound to his bed in order to safeguard himself and those around him.
He was taken to the Vía Alemán courts in Palma, and then released on bail.
Billy Vunipola has featured in over 70 Tests for England
Besides a prolific Test career with England, Vunipola has also been a stalwart with domestic club Saracens, earning over 150 caps.
A Saracens club statement read: “Saracens is aware of an incident involving Billy Vunipola in Majorca. We will of course deal with this incident internally, and will not make any further comment until then.”
‘Bothering patrons’
The bar’s owner, Toni Rocha, said that Billy Vunipola had arrived at the bar at around 3am with another player, reported to be prop Marco Riccioni, according to the Telegraph Sport.
“He didn’t threaten customers or staff with bottles or bar stalls or anything like that but he was annoying other customers by pushing them, not in a violent way, but elbowing them and bothering them,” Roch stated.
“He put his shirt on when I asked him to first time round. His friend who was co-operative at all times helped him put it back on. But then he took it off a second time and then a third and we decided to call police.
“When the back-up arrived the police told us to clear the bar, put the lights on and cut the music… The rugby player reacted by confronting the officers when they went to talk to him and insult them. I heard him saying ‘f—— cops’. He also hit one of them with his shirt in his hand.
“They tried to get him out and couldn’t until they tasered him. He laughed the first time they went to taser him, it was like a film, and I heard the words ‘Another one’ and the second time round he fell to the ground and the officers immobilised him and put wrist-ties on him.”
Summing up the incident, Rocha added: “It could have turned out very different and ended very badly because we were dealing with a strong man who was very drunk and was acting inappropriately and refusing requests for him to leave. We felt things could have got broken or he could have assaulted someone if we tried to force him out.
