Mark Sanchez Pleads Not Guilty in Stabbing Incident, Alleged Victim Likely to Have ‘Permanent Scarring’

Mark Sanchez has pleaded not guilty to all charges regarding the alleged altercation with a truck driver in Indianapolis.

According to The Athletic, prosecutors in Marion County added a felony battery charge against the former NFL quarterback on Monday, October 6.

Ryan Mears, the prosecutor pursuing felony charges in Sanchez’s case, revealed that the alleged victim is likely to suffer from “permanent scarring.”

“You have a 38-year-old former professional athlete who is alleged to be involved in a violent confrontation with a 69-year-old man which is literally over a parking spot, and under those circumstances, no one should walk away with serious injuries, yet that’s what we’re dealing with,” Mears said in a Monday, October 6, interview with Tom Llamas on Top Story.

“This was one of those situations that didn’t need to occur,” he continued. “This individual is dealing with not only significant pain but also very likely facing the potential of having to deal with permanent scarring on their body. He’s in good spirits, he’s progressing but progressing very slowly.”

Perry Tole, a truck driver, claims that he and Sanchez, 38, got into a physical altercation on October 4 regarding a parking spot at the hotel Sanchez was staying at in Indianapolis. The former NFL quarterback allegedly entered Tole’s truck and blocked him from calling for help. Tole then used pepper spray on Sanchez, according to court documents obtained by Globe, but Sanchez allegedly continued to advance toward him.

According to court documents obtained by ABC News, Tole went on to stab Sanchez multiple times, and then allegedly went “flying back into the dumpster and falling onto the pallets on the ground,” and said that he “was not aware of what Mr. Sanchez was physically doing to him, whether he was punching him or otherwise striking him.”

Sanchez suffered a lacerated cheek and several stab wounds. He was later arrested at the hospital and initially charged with three misdemeanors – battery with injury, unlawful entry of a motor vehicle, and public intoxication. According to New York Post, Sanchez told police he has no memory of the incident.

However, after further review of surveillance video and the severity of Tole’s injuries, Mears upgraded one of the counts to a felony battery involving serious bodily injury. Sanchez will return to court for a pretrial hearing conference on November 4.