Former four-division title-holder Adrien Broner shared a series of alarming posts on social media on Wednesday that suggested he was planning to take his own life, though a longtime adviser to the boxer reached by the Guardian insists “he’s OK”.
The 27-year-old fighter posted a photo of a handgun inside a vehicle with the caption “I’m going home I love y’all” on Instagram. That came hours after a post that simply read: “3PM I’m doing it I’m sorry to my family and friends but I don’t want to be here no more this shit too much”.
TMZ reported that Broner’s friends are “extremely concerned” and at least one has contacted police.
But Sam Watson, a longtime confidant to the Cincinnati fighter, insisted that Broner “is OK” when reached by phone on Wednesday afternoon.
“He’s OK, he’s OK,” Watson told the Guardian. “I’m not sure what’s going on but I talked to him yesterday and he was fine. I’m sure he’s OK.”
Broner’s partner Arienne Gazaway, who goes by Arie Nicole, later communicated that the fighter was out of harm’s way in a Snapchat post, writing that “Adrien is okay!”
Later Wednesday, the Cincinnati Police department confirmed they had made contact with Broner and “all is well”.
@CincinnatiPD is aware of concerns regarding boxer @AdrienBroner. Have looked into this and made contact. All is well. Thx for the concern!
— Cincinnati Police (@CincinnatiPD) October 12, 2016
Earlier this year Broner was charged with felony assault and robbery at gunpoint of a man outside a Cincinnati bowling alley on the morning of 21 January, where it was alleged the boxer lost $12,000 to the victim during a night of high-stakes betting on bowling games. Those charges were dropped last month when the accuser and a material witness failed to turn up in court.
Broner served a 10-day jail sentence in April for a violation of his probation relating to a reckless driving case from last year. He had previously been sentenced to six months’ probation in July relating to a drunken driving arrest, later entering a plea of no contest to reckless driving.
Despite those charges, Broner was permitted to fight on 1 April in Washington DC on the condition he turned himself in upon return to Ohio. He lost his junior welterweight title on the scale after failing to make weight, but scored a ninth-round TKO of Ashley Theophane.
Broner, who has held versions of major world title belts at 130lb, 135lb, 140lb and 147lb, complied by surrendering to authorities three days following the fight and was released after posting bond of $100,000.
He’s been inactive since but was reportedly in talks for a title shot in February against Scotland’s Ricky Burns, who retained the WBA’s version of the super lightweight championship on Friday night in Glasgow.
In the US, the National Suicide Prevention Hotline is 1-800-273-8255. In the UK, the Samaritans can be contacted on 116 123. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is on 13 11 14.
