Police statement on the Ben Stokes arrest

Ben Stokes, the England Test vice-captain was arrested early on Monday morning (September 25) in Bristol. He was in the jail for the night only to be released the next morning and wasn’t charged. English opener Alex Hales was with him and thus he returned back to Bristol from London to assist the investigation.

Both the players will thus miss Wednesday’s (September 27) 4th One-Day International against Windies at The Oval in London. ECB in a statement confirmed that the cricketer was arrested though they didn’t mention any further details of the case. It comes a day ahead of the selection meet for the Ashes to be played in November.

Avon and Somerset Police in their statement mentioned that they were informed of a disorder in Queens Road in the wee hours of the morning. There they found a young man with injuries on his face and was taken to the infirmary for treatment. In relation to it, they arrested a 26-year-old man (Ben Stokes) on suspicion and was later released.

Police statement

“We were called to a disorder in Queens Road, Clifton, at around 2.35am on Monday (25 September). A 27-year-old man was found to have suffered facial injuries and was taken to the Bristol Royal Infirmary for treatment,” the statement read.

“A 26-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of causing actual bodily harm and has since been released under investigation,” it added.

They requested anyone who was in the area at that time to get in touch with the investigators and help with any information they would have on the incident.

“We’d appeal for anyone who was in the Clifton Triangle area in the early hours of Monday who saw any part of this incident, to call Investigations on 101 and give the call handler the reference number 6217218578.”

Did you witness a disorder in Queens Road or Clifton Triangle area of #Bristol around 2.35am yesterday? Details below: pic.twitter.com/oYQ3qeB3Bb

— Avon&Somerset Police (@ASPolice) September 26, 2017

England and Wales Cricket Board’s (ECB) team director Andrew Strauss in a statement said:

“Ben Stokes and Alex Hales will not be available for tomorrow’s One-Day International match against West Indies at The Oval. Stokes was arrested in the early hours of Monday morning, 25 September, following an incident in Bristol.”

“He was held overnight and released under investigation – without charge – late on Monday and will not join the team in London. Hales, who was with Stokes on Sunday night, did not train this morning and has returned voluntarily to Bristol today to help Police with their enquiries,” Strauss stated.