Young Newcastle Midfielder Could Face Prison After Admitting Violent Nightclub Incident
Newcastle United midfielder Rolando Aarons could be facing time in prison after pleading guilty to affray outside a city nightclub.
The 22-year-old, currently on loan at Italian side Hellas Verona, was with a group including his mum and his cousin when they clashed with a group of men outside Livello in Newcastle.
Ian MacNicol/GettyImages
The Daily Mail report that Aarons was with his mother Joan Jacob, 46; his friends Jamar Collins, 22, and Kallum Phillips, 23; and his cousin Garfield White, 23.
Initially, the group were charged with violent disorder following the incident in 2016. However, that has now been downgraded to affray, a charge for which the group have pleaded guilty and will be sentenced in May.
Judge Edward Bindloss, sitting at Newcastle Crown Court, said: “The fact I’m adjourning your cases and granting bail is no indication of the likely sentence. All options remain open including an immediate custodial sentence.”
Describing the incident, the judge said it was a "serious incident with personal violence being used and items being thrown."
"Rolando Aarons and family and friends were celebrating a birthday and they were in Livello. There was no indication of any trouble or problems hitherto.
"CCTV shows this incident blew up out of nowhere and suddenly there is a large melee involving numerous people," he added.
Stu Forster/GettyImages
A witness spoke to the Sun at the time of the incident, saying: "He (Aarons) was having a great time.
"But he noticed eight to ten blokes trying to bump and grind with his auntie on the dance floor.
"He went over and told them to stop. His view was that they'd had their fun and it was going too far. He made his views pretty clear and that's when all hell broke loose. They were throwing tables and bottles of champagne.
"There was blood everywhere by the end. There were girls falling about all over the place and people being trapped."
The winger made four Premier League appearances for Newcastle earlier this season, before moving to Italin outfit Hellas Verona on loan during the January transfer window. He signed a five-year contract at Newcastle shortly before the incident outside Livello.
