California prosecutors confirmed Tuesday that Mike Tyson would not face criminal charges.
Tyson was videotaped while repeatedly hitingt a guy who reportedly tossed a water bottle at him onboard a JetBlue aircraft last month.
According to TMZ, San Mateo County District Attorney Stephen Wagstaffe’s office has chosen to drop the case.
This was due to “the conduct of the victim leading up to the incident, the interaction between Mr. Tyson and the victim, and the requests of both the victim and Mr. Tyson.”
On April 20, the former heavyweight champion, 55, was captured on video. The video showed Tyson hitting fellow passenger Melvin Townsend III multiple times in the head while traveling first-class to Florida.
Tyson has moved on from the incident and shared thoughts on Canelo Alvarez boxing bout with Bivol in addition to negotiating his own ring return.
A source close to Tyson, who wasn’t on the aircraft at the time, informed that Townsend harassed Tyson and hurled a water bottle at him before the in-flight incident. Townsend also has a lengthy criminal history.
The case has been dismissed by the San Mateo County District Attorney’s Office due to “the conduct of the victim leading up to the incident.”
Tyson was going from San Francisco to Miami for a conference where he was scheduled to be the keynote speaker at the time of the altercation.
Townsend was seen standing over Tyson’s seat. He was flailing his arms about and chatting animatedly as “Iron Mike” sat stoically in a viral video provided.
Tyson’s representatives subsequently acknowledged that he “had an incident on a flight with an aggressive passenger who began harassing him and threw a water bottle at him while he was in his seat.”
According to the cellphone clip, Townsend was bruised and sullen after the incident. Townsend was subsequently treated for his injuries, but police say he refused to participate in the inquiry.