Sanchez charged after allegedly attacking driver

Former NFL quarterback Mark Sanchez was pepper-sprayed and stabbed multiple times during a late-night altercation with a 69-year-old truck driver in a downtown Indianapolis alley, which resulted in three criminal charges against the Fox Sports analyst, according to court records filed Sunday.

Sanchez, 38, was charged with battery with injury, public intoxication and unlawful entry of a vehicle -- all misdemeanors -- by the Marion County Prosecutor's Office on Sunday morning. An initial hearing has been scheduled for 8:30 a.m. ET Tuesday, with bond set at $300.

"This incident should never have happened," Marion County prosecutor Ryan Mears said in a statement Sunday. "What began as a disagreement between a 38-year-old former professional athlete and a 69-year-old man should not have escalated into violence or left anyone seriously injured. As with any case, we will follow the facts and the law wherever they lead."

According to an affidavit for probable cause based on hotel video footage of the altercation early Saturday and statements to police, Sanchez allegedly accosted the driver of a box truck that backed into a hotel's loading dock.

According to the affidavit, the confrontation escalated to the point where the truck driver believed he was in danger, sprayed Sanchez in the face with pepper spray and, with Sanchez still advancing toward him, said he thought "this guy is trying to kill me."

The truck driver then pulled his knife and, with Sanchez still coming at him, said he struck Sanchez "two or three times," according to the affidavit. The truck driver said he was thrown against a dumpster and onto the ground and believed he was in a "life-or-death situation." The driver, according to the affidavit, then said "a look of shock" came to Sanchez's face and Sanchez "took off."

Sanchez was arrested by the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department at a hospital Saturday. Fox Sports on Saturday said in a statement that he was recovering and in stable condition.

The affidavit said Sanchez suffered several stab wounds to his right torso area while the driver had a laceration on his left cheek and was taken to a different hospital than Sanchez for treatment.

Sanchez told a police officer that "all he could remember was grabbing for a window," adding that he did not know who stabbed him or where it happened, according to the affidavit.

Police got a warrant to obtain Sanchez's phone and clothes from the hospital, the document said.

There were no immediate court records indicating whether Sanchez had legal representation yet.

Fox Sports play-by-play announcer Chris Myers also acknowledged Sanchez's absence on Sunday before introducing Sanchez's replacement, Brady Quinn. Myers said he wanted to send thoughts and prayers to Sanchez and everyone involved in the incident.

The IMPD said Saturday that it was investigating an incident between two men that took place at approximately 12:30 a.m. The IMPD did not identify the men in its earlier statement but said one man received lacerations while the other man received injuries consistent with stab wounds.

Detectives reviewed video footage of the confrontation, which police said occurred in the popular downtown Wholesale District next to the Indiana Statehouse.

Sanchez was scheduled to be part of the broadcast crew for Sunday's contest between the Las Vegas Raiders and Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium but will no longer work the game.

Sanchez played eight seasons in the NFL after being selected fifth by the New York Jets in the 2009 draft out of USC. He helped the Jets advance to back-to-back AFC Championship Games in his first two seasons.

He also played for the Philadelphia Eagles, Dallas Cowboys and Washington, the team he last appeared in a regular-season game for in 2018.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.