Ten star athletes who have fallen foul of the law
Brazilian football legend Ronaldinho faces six months behind bars after his hopes of release from a fake passport rap were dashed last week. PD takes a look at some big names in the sports world who rubbed the law in the wrong way and ended behind bars.
1. Ronaldinho
The party-loving former Barcelona and AC Milan superstar, famed for his lavish birthday bashes, left a court hearing in handcuffs last week.
Ronaldinho, a star of Brazil’s 2002 World Cup winning side and one of the greatest ever footballers, is being held in a jail in the outskirts of Paraguayan capital Asuncion.
His birthday will be a far cry from others including his 26th when he partied until 6am at a Barcelona nightclub as he is expected to celebrate his 40th birthday behind the bars.
His 32nd, which lasted five days and cost tens of thousands of pounds, took place at a luxury hotel in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
2. Oscar Pistorius
Oscar Leonard Carl Pistorius is a 33 year old South African former professional sprinter and convicted murderer. 
In 2015 he was found guilty for the 2013 murder of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp. Both of Pistorius’ feet had been amputated when he was 11 months old due to a congenital defect. He is currently serving a 15 year prison sentence.
3. Tedium Rodgers
Tedium Rodgers, who joined I joined Mathare Youth Sports Association (MYSA) in 1987 starting off in the under-12 team, was arrested on July 4, 2000 and was convicted on robbery with violence.
Court records indicate that at Kiambu township, while armed with crude weapons - knives and machetes - Teddy and his co-accused jointly robbed their accuser of his Panasonic TV valued at Sh27,000 and one blanket valued at Sh500; and that they threatened to use actual violence on the complainant.
He spent 19 years in jail and was freed on August 19, 2019 on grounds of being a first offender.
4. Marion Jones
Marion Lois Jones, also known as Marion Jones-Thompson, is an American former world champion track and field athlete and a former professional basketball player for Tulsa Shock in the WNBA. 
She was sent to prison for six months on charges of using an illegal substance while in competition.
She is one of the few athletes in this country who were charge and some thought unfairly since this was her first offense.
5. Mike Tyson
Tyson is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1985 to 2005.
He reigned as the undisputed world heavyweight champion and holds the record as the youngest boxer to win a heavyweight title, at 20 years, four months, and 22 days old.
He stayed in trouble back in the 1990’s. He was sent to prison on rape charges which some feel to this day were trumped up charges.
6. Allen Iverson 
Back in Virginia, where former NBA star Allen Iverson played football and basketball, he was accused along with several others of starting a race fight in a local bowling ally which divided his hometown along racial lines because it was debated whether or not Iverson deserve to spend time in jail for the incident.
7. OJ Simpson
OJ Simpson a former American Football star was acquitted of a double homicide in one of the most high-profile criminal cases in recent history.
Many in the nation were shocked that the superstar football player-turned actor and TV pitchman was accused of murder.
Simpson had been out of the spotlight after the trial, but he was arrested for armed robbery, kidnapping, and assault charges in 2007.
Convicted in 2008, Simpson was paroled in 2017 after serving the minimum of his nine-to-33 years sentence.
8. Joey Barton
Barton a professional English footballer who even played for Man City, has been sentenced to a total of 10 months in prison during his career, serving 77 days.
While at Newcastle, he was sentenced to six months in jail in May 2008 after being found guilty of common assault and affray during an incident in Liverpool City Centre.
In July 2008 he was also given a four-month suspended sentence after admitting assault occasioning actual bodily harm on former team-mate Ousmane Dabo.
9. Marlon King
The former Watford, Wigan and Sheffield United striker is currently serving 18 months in jail following a conviction for dangerous driving in May 2014.
King has served three jail sentences in his lifetime as well as having a number of other criminal convictions.
In 2009, whilst at Wigan, he was sentenced to 18 months imprisonment for sexual assault charges.
10. Jermaine Pennant
Another player forced to wear an electronic tag while playing, Pennant was given a three-month prison sentence for driving offences.
At the time the player was on loan at Birmingham City. When he returned from his time in jail after 30 days the Blues signed the winger on a permanent deal.
He remained with the side for a year before signing for Liverpool on a four-year deal. He has since played for Real Zaragoza and Stoke City.
