UFC star who called cop ‘f*cking liar, pig’ accuses officer of racial bias

By Police1 Staff

ALBUQUERQUE — UFC fighter Jon Jones once again called out the officer who pulled him over last month on suspicion of drag racing, KOAT reported.

Jones made headlines when Officer Jason Brown pulled him over on March 24 and the officer’s body camera caught Jones calling him a “f*cking liar” and “pig” during a rant. Now, Jones has used his social media platforms to comment on racial profiling claims against Brown.

“I’m definitely not one to pull the race card,” Jones wrote. “At the same time, I’m not necessarily surprised about this discovery after the run in I had with him.”

Jones went on to say the incident made him feel powerless and that Brown almost ruined his trust in law enforcement. Jones said he once dreamed of becoming a cop as he previously studied criminal justice in school.

Officer Brown all over the news in Albuquerque after reporters dig up how many times he has been in trouble for racial profiling in the past. Being a father of biracial children, I’m definitely not one to pull the race card. At the same time, I’m not necessarily surprised about this discovery after the run in I had with him. Having him stand there, look me in the eyes and start accusing me of several things him and I both know I didn’t do made me feel let down by the community, made me feel powerless, he made me feel like what was actually true had no power over him. Now it’s easier for me to understand why so many people hold resentment towards law enforcement. Officer brown almost single-handedly ruined my trust in law-enforcement. The sad thing about it is, I actually went to school for criminal justice, I wanted to be an officer myself. Fortunately I know better than to let one person ruin my views of a whole group. Just glad people are finally bringing light to who I was dealing with that night.

A video posted by Jon Bones Jones (@jonnybones) on Apr 11, 2016 at 12:10pm PDT

Jones’ attorney, Vincent Ward, told the news site that racial profiling can not be tolerated.

“It is concerning to me that Jon spent three days in jail after being stopped by a guy who may in fact be a racist,” Ward said.

Ward told KOAT he “can’t think of any plausible reason for targeting Jon Jones other than” because he’s black.”

Police spokesperson Celina Espinoza agreed that racial profiling is a serious issue and the department investigates any claims to make sure officers are held accountable.

Brown is a DWI officer, Espinoza said, and many attorneys use claims of racial bias to clear their clients of charges.

In civilian complaints obtained by the Albuquerque Journal, Brown’s file includes eight incidents, three of which involve accusations of racial profiling. A 2009 complaint said Brown and another officer stopped Rozel Minter because he and his passengers were “black males in a nice car with rims.” An independent review found no evidence to support Minter’s claims.

The second complaint came in 2013 from Ivory Soto, who accused Brown of not using his body camera during the arrest. In his police report, Brown noted he arrested Soto because he was passed out at the wheel and there was a pile of vomit outside the car door. Charges against Soto were dismissed.

In 2014, Terrence Saunders claimed Brown stopped him and falsely accused him of running a stop sign. Another independent review officer found there was no evidence of racial profiling.

Ward told KOAT despite what the department says about the incident, he thinks Jones was targeted due to his race and hopes this incident brings about awareness.