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MADRID :England rugby international Billy Vunipola was sentenced to four months’ imprisonment and fined 240 euros ($256.92) for assault and battery after being arrested by police in Mallorca, Spain, following an incident at a pub.
Palma’s Examining Court also ordered him to pay 500 euros to a police officer who was injured during the incident following a speedy trial on Sunday.
Under Spanish law, a prison sentence of less than two years does not usually lead to serving any time behind bars unless there are previous criminal records.
According to a report in the Ultima Hora newspaper, Vunipola was tasered twice by police after threatening customers and security personnel and removing his shirt in a bar named Epic in Palma early on Sunday.
The report added that the 31-year-old was handcuffed by the police and taken to the Son Espases hospital in Palma, where he was sedated, before being taken to court on Sunday afternoon.
Vunipola plays for Premiership Rugby club Saracens, who said in a statement that they were aware of the incident and would deal with it “internally”.
“In the early hours of yesterday morning, at 4.30 am, the National Police proceeded to the arrest of a 31-year-old foreign man, for a crime of disobedience and attacking a police officer…,” a spokesperson for the National Police in Majorca told Reuters.
“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, hitting a projectile in the wallet, which did not 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.”
Vunipola, in a statement shared by Saracens on Monday, denied threatening anybody.
“Contrary to media reports, there was no violence, no fight and I did not threaten anybody at any stage,” Vunipola said.
“I was charged with resisting the law and, following an ‘express trial’, I have paid a fine of 240 euros. 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 for all involved.”
Vunipola has made 75 appearances for England and was part of the team that finished runners-up in the 2019 World Cup. He was not selected in the England squad for this year’s Six Nations.
His brother Mako also played for England until his retirement in January, while his father played for Tonga.
($1 = 0.9341 euros)
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