Former Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez was hit with a felony battery charge that carries up to six years in prison in connection with his alleged alleyway assault of a delivery driver, Indianapolis authorities said Monday.
Sanchez, 38, was stabbed in the incident early Saturday morning, but cops said he was wounded by a 69-year-old truck driver acting in self-defense. He was initially charged with three misdemeanors, but prosecutors added the felony charge Monday.
“Once we were provided with additional information about the victim’s current medical condition, it became clear to us that additional charges needed to be filed,” Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears said at a press conference.
The new charge, battery resulting in serious bodily injury, carries a potential prison sentence of one to six years if Sanchez is convicted.
On Sunday, family members of the truck driver released photos of his injuries, showing him hospitalized in a neck brace with a gash on his left cheek. The man has since been released from the hospital.
Sanchez remains hospitalized in stable condition, authorities said Monday. The next court hearing in his case is scheduled for Nov. 4.
The NFL veteran was visiting Indianapolis as part of Fox Sports’ broadcast team for Sunday’s Las Vegas Raiders at Indianapolis Colts game. He was replaced by Brady Quinn.
Cops said just after midnight on Saturday, Sanchez got into an argument with a truck driver who had parked in an alley at the Westin Hotel in downtown Indianapolis. The man drove for an industrial cooking oil disposal company.
“Mr. Sanchez told [the driver] that he could not be there [at the loading dock] and that he [Sanchez] had spoken to the manager of the hotel,” prosecutors wrote in a probable cause affidavit.
The ensuing argument spiraled out of control, and surveillance video captured Sanchez throwing the man against a wall and to the ground in the confrontation, according to police. The driver told cops he pepper-sprayed Sanchez, but the ex-NFLer simply wiped it away and continued advancing toward him.
The man told police he thought, “This guy is trying to kill me,” so he pulled a knife and stabbed Sanchez. The former quarterback is still facing the initial misdemeanor charges of battery resulting in injury, public intoxication and unlawful entry of a motor vehicle.
Sanchez’s attorneys have not commented on the case. The truck driver was not charged with any crimes.
With News Wire Services
