Jeff Hardy, Paige, Alberto Del Rio and Enzo Amore: WWE superstars’ most embarrassing and badly timed arrests
Hardy was arrested on Sunday night and is not what WWE would want just weeks ahead of WrestleMania... but it's not the first incident of it's kind
JEFF HARDY was arrested at the weekend for driving while impaired, after his Cadillac collided with a road guardrail and spun out across the road.
It’s bad timing for Jeff, who has a history of substance problems.
He’s set to return to action any day following months out from surgery – and just weeks before WrestleMania.
And it’s not the only badly timed or embarrassing arrest to happen to a WWE superstar. Wrestling history is full of similar incidents. Here are some of the most notorious.
Rob Van Dam
Rob Van Dam became dual ECW and WWE Champion at One Night Stand ’06 on June 11, after winning a red hot match against the near-invincible golden boy John Cena.
It wasn’t just a victory for RVD, it was a victory for the die hard fans too.
One of their most fervently supported talents – one who didn’t fit the “WWE Superstar” mould – had become a made man.
But it turned out RVD really wasn’t world champion material – not the kind of PR-friendly champion WWE wanted as the face of the company, at least.
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On July 1, 2006 – just three weeks after his big win – Van Dam and Sabu were pulled over by police in Hanging Rock, Ohio.
RVD was found to be in possession of five Vicodin pills and 19 grams of marijuana.
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Sabu was found with drug paraphernalia and nine Testolactone pills.
RVD was booked to lose the WWE Championship to Edge on Raw two nights later and suspended for 30 days. Unsurprisingly, he never became a WWE world champ again.
Emma
The smart-fan favourite was instrumental in kicking off the women’s evolution in NXT, but got herself in trouble in June 2014.
The Aussie star – real name Tenille Dashwood – was charged with “sixth degree larceny” after reportedly shoplifting an iPad cover from a Wal-Mart in Hartford, CT.
Her lawyer said the incident was simply a mistake and she had forgotten to pay for the item at a self-service checkout after spending $30 on other items.
She was served with community service, but later released by WWE – before being reinstated later that very day, as announced on WWE.com.
But it’s safe to say WWE never quite had faith in her again – and later scrapped her repackaging as “Emmalina”.
She was eventually released from the company in October last year.
Hacksaw Jim Duggan
Duggan came into WWE in January 1987 and had a big babyface push – including a featured moment at WrestleMania III.
But in May of that year, Duggan and on-screen enemy the Iron Sheik were pulled over and arrested.
Duggan was found with marijuana and the Sheik found with with cocaine – which Hacksaw has always maintained he knew nothing about.
The drugs weren’t the embarrassment, it was the fact these sworn wrestling enemies were traveling together – or worse still, they were actually friends.
(Though Duggan has always said that’s the biggest misconception over the incident – they weren’t friends, he was just giving the Sheik a lift on that one occasion.)
This was still the age of kayfabe and the scandal of babyfaces and heels travelling together rocked the wrestling world.
Vince McMahon was furious and fired Duggan, though he was brought back fairly quickly.
But Duggan never regained that mega push or won the championship he believes he was being primed for before the arrest.
Rich Swann
Former Cruiserweight Champion Rich Swann was arrested in December last year and charged with domestic battery and false imprisonment.
The arrest followed an incident with Swann’s wrestler wife, Su Yung, while the pair were driving and an argument broke out.
According to reports Su Yung got out of the car as she believed Swann would turn violent, but he followed her out, headlocked her, and dragged her back into the car.
She escaped the car a second time, and Swann got out to chase once again – but didn’t put the handbrake on, so the car rolled into a telegraph pole.
Swann was due to face Drew Gulak the following night on Raw for a number one contender spot against then-Cruiserweight Champion Enzo Amore.
It prompted hasty rewrites that saw Cedric Alexander take Swann’s place as a potential challenger to Enzo’s title.
WWE suspended Swann immediately and – though charged were eventually dropped due to “insufficient evidence” – and mutually agreed to part ways in February.
Ric Flair
Flair is no stranger to legal controversy, including fighting with daughter Charlotte’s boyfriend in 2008, failing to repay a loan on a title belt, and sexual assault accusations during the infamous “plane ride from hell”.
Another notorious moment came in November 2005, when the Nature Boy went full road rage.
Flair was reported to have jumped out of his car on an interstate near Charlotte, NC, where he grabbed another driver by the neck and kicked their SUV, leaving a large dent.
Flair spent almost a week in jail before posting bail.
Though Flair’s behaviour was a considerable embarrassment, it drew enough attention that WWE made it part of a storyline.
In a segment that aired on Raw, Edge reenacted the road rage incident – while dressed in a platinum wig and trademark Flair robe.
Ken Patera
The former Olympic weightlifter and top wrestling villain was involved in one of wrestling’s most notorious ever incidents – and eventually sentenced to two years in prison.
In April 1984, Patera – who was in the AWA at the time – and occasional tag partner Masanori Saito went a McDonald’s in Waukesha, Wisconsin after drinking at a bar.
An employee told the pair that the restaurant was closed, so strongman Patera threw a 30-pound rock through the window.
Patera disputes this and maintains that a drunken, disgruntled former employee – who happened to be passing (and happened to have the strength of an Olympic weightlifter) – actually threw the rock.
When police arrived at their hotel, Patera and Saito were involved in a violent altercation with officers.
Patera says they were maced for no reason. Other reports say the heel duo overpowered and severely beat the officers.
Patera served a year and a half in prison before he was released for good behaviour – and returned to WWE as a sympathetic babyface.
Vader
“The Mastadon” created an international incident in April 1997 when he roughed up the presenter of a Kuwaiti TV chat show.
Appearing alongside then-WWE Champion The Undertaker, Vader blew a fuse after being asked the age-old question of “is it fake?”
Vader flipped the table and grabbed the host by the scruff of the neck.
He was later charged with assault and using obscene language – and placed under house arrest at a luxury $600-a-night hotel.
Because his arrest fell over a religious holiday, Vader was stuck in Kuwait for two weeks.
He faced further charges of public drunkenness after a heavy drinking session-turned-Vader rampage resulted in over a dozen police officers being called to the hotel.
He was eventually sent home after 10 days under house arrest.
Paige
Paige and Alberto Del Rio were involved in an incident in Las Vegas in June 2016, following WWE’s Money in the Bank pay-per-view.
Rumours were rife after footage was posted online of the former women’s champ being handcuffed by police. The incident was a huge mystery.
As it turned out, Paige and Del Rio were completely innocent. They had been hounded by a drunken couple at a Vegas show, which had turned into an argument in the street.
Police arrived and handcuffed everyone involved as a precaution. But it was the first in a chain of events that made Paige a constant PR nightmare for WWE.
In the next few months she was suspended twice for wellness policy violations – and her notorious sex tapes were leaked at the start of 2017.
With Paige out for neck surgery at the time – not to mention the face WWE was producing a high profile film based on her life – the company was all-but forced to stick by her.
Enzo Amore
It’s been the biggest wrestling scandal of the year so far – Enzo Amore being accused of rape.
Though he hasn’t been arrested, the star is under investigation – something he failed to notify WWE about until the story went public.
It was a huge embarrassment for the company.
Not only was Enzo the reigning cruiserweight champion, but the story broke hours before the broadcast of Raw’s highly publicized 25th anniversary show.
Enzo – real name Eric Arndt – was suspended immediately and released the following day. Don’t expect a WWE return from the one-time realest guy in the room.
Jeff Hardy
Jeff’s previous arrest was actually a major embarrassment narrowly avoided for WWE – as the arrest took place just two weeks after Jeff had left the company in summer 2009.
Police raided his house and found 262 Vicodin pills, 180 Soma pills, steroids, drug paraphernalia and residual cocaine.
Jeff had dropped the World Heavyweight Championship just three weeks before to CM Punk.
Imagine if WWE had managed to persuade Hardy to re-sign – as it desperately wanted him to do – and put the title back on him, only for him to be busted with that stash.
Especially after straight edge superstar CM Punk had spent all summer berating Jeff in storylines about his real-life substance problems.
Jeff pleaded guilty to possession of a controlled substance and conspiracy to traffic a substance containing opium.
He was sentenced to 10 days in jail, a suspended sentence, and a $100,000 fine.