WWE Developmental Talent Arrested in Incident
From: PWInsider
WWE developmental talent Stu Sanders (real name Stuart Alexander Bennett), 27, was arrested on Sunday 6/15 in Tampa, charged with Battery on a Law Enforcement Officer (a felony) and Obstructing or Opposing an Officer (a misdemeanor). Bennett was arrested outside Champps Restaurant and Bar (2223 West Shore Boulevard North) at 2 AM was released at 1:43 PM the next day.
The story making its way around among wrestlers in FCW was that Bennett attempted to remove himself from the premises following an altercation with a female patron he didn't know that bumped into him. When Bennett attempted to leave the bar (which may not have been Champps, although it's address matches the location of the arrest on the police report), someone came up to Bennett and attempted to stop him from leaving. That person ended up being a plain-clothes police officer.
There are conflicting reports on whether Bennett was aware that the person who approached him was a police officer until after the incident. One version of the story is that Sanders was followed outside into the street and shot with a tazer gun while attempting to leave the scene.
All versions of the story I've heard have pointed out a sad irony that the female Bennett had the altercation with declined to press charges and allegedly told authorities that she was at fault for the initial incident.
While the arrest record lists Battery on an Officer, the story making its way among wrestlers is that Bennett has told everyone he simply tried to leave the scene and did not attempt to physically engage anyone. He's also claimed that if he was aware the person was a police officer, he wouldn't have tried to leave the scene to begin with and that he had witnesses that would back up his story in court.
Sanders, a British talent, is currently one half of the FCW Tag Team champions with Drew McIntyre. Among developmental talents, there was a large fear that Bennett's arrest would result in a release from his WWE deal as a way to "send a message" following Michael Brendli's release in the wake of his DUI arrest.
WWE developmental talent Stu Sanders (real name Stuart Alexander Bennett), 27, was arrested on Sunday 6/15 in Tampa, charged with Battery on a Law Enforcement Officer (a felony) and Obstructing or Opposing an Officer (a misdemeanor). Bennett was arrested outside Champps Restaurant and Bar (2223 West Shore Boulevard North) at 2 AM was released at 1:43 PM the next day.
The story making its way around among wrestlers in FCW was that Bennett attempted to remove himself from the premises following an altercation with a female patron he didn't know that bumped into him. When Bennett attempted to leave the bar (which may not have been Champps, although it's address matches the location of the arrest on the police report), someone came up to Bennett and attempted to stop him from leaving. That person ended up being a plain-clothes police officer.
There are conflicting reports on whether Bennett was aware that the person who approached him was a police officer until after the incident. One version of the story is that Sanders was followed outside into the street and shot with a tazer gun while attempting to leave the scene.
All versions of the story I've heard have pointed out a sad irony that the female Bennett had the altercation with declined to press charges and allegedly told authorities that she was at fault for the initial incident.
While the arrest record lists Battery on an Officer, the story making its way among wrestlers is that Bennett has told everyone he simply tried to leave the scene and did not attempt to physically engage anyone. He's also claimed that if he was aware the person was a police officer, he wouldn't have tried to leave the scene to begin with and that he had witnesses that would back up his story in court.
Sanders, a British talent, is currently one half of the FCW Tag Team champions with Drew McIntyre. Among developmental talents, there was a large fear that Bennett's arrest would result in a release from his WWE deal as a way to "send a message" following Michael Brendli's release in the wake of his DUI arrest.
Labels: Stu Sanders
