Woman says ex-Patriot must be punished

Recounts fight, alleged attack

''I just don't want him to get away with it,'' said Melissa Rodriguez, who said former Patriots player Tebucky Jones (above) grabbed her inappropriately in the lobby of the Mohegan Sun casino. (Jonathan Wiggs/Globe Staff/File 2006)

The woman at the center of a fight between a Connecticut man and former New England Patriots player Tebucky Jones said yesterday that she hopes the athlete is punished for attacking her and her boyfriend and that his celebrity status does not help him escape justice.

"I just don't want him to get away with it," said Melissa Rodriguez, a 21-year-old student at Mitchell College in New London, Conn. "It's just not right."

Rodriguez, who has obtained a lawyer, said she was appalled when, she alleges, Jones grabbed her inappropriately in the lobby of the Mohegan Sun casino.

She said she was horrified when the 33-year-old former safety rushed at them, pushed her into a wall, and punched her boyfriend, knocking him to the ground and bloodying his face. The boyfriend suffered a broken nose and four chipped teeth, she said.

"I don't know what gave him the right to think he could not only grab me, but then physically assault my boyfriend just for defending me," she said.

Police arrested Jones, charging him with breach of peace, third-degree assault, and fourth-degree sexual assault. The Farmington, Conn., resident was released on $5,000 cash bail.

The woman's boyfriend and a third man who allegedly jumped into the fight were charged with breaching the peace. Rodriguez said it's unfair to punish someone who was defending her.

Rodriguez said she, her boyfriend, and friends had just left the Ultra 88 dance club at the casino about 1 a.m. Friday when, she said, Jones walked by and groped her.

"He just kind of smirked," she said in a telephone interview.

Her boyfriend, Nikolaos Papathanasious, 22, said something to the effect of, "what do you think you're doing, that's my girlfriend," Rodriguez said.

She praised her boyfriend for sticking up for her, but she never expected a fight.

"This has never happened to us," she said. "He's never gotten into a fight, he's never been arrested, he's never gotten into trouble."

Police allege that Papathanasious of Quaker Hill, Conn., and Jones had a quick exchange of words before a fight started. Rodriguez said Jones rushed at them and threw her to the ground, then punched her boyfriend.

Jones tried to flee, but then a third man, a friend of Rodriguez, punched Jones in the face. That man, Mark Chichester, 36, of New London, Conn., also was charged with disturbing the peace.

Rodriguez said that if it wasn't for Chichester, Jones would have possibly evaded arrest. But security guards arrived quickly and turned the three over to police. Papathanasious and Chichester were each released on a $250 bond.

The three men are expected to return to court Aug. 21.

The Globe could not reach Jones or his lawyer for comment yesterday.

The former football star is a graduate of Syracuse University and was a Patriots first-round draft pick in 1998. He played in New England until traded to the New Orleans Saints in 2003. In 2005, he was traded to the Miami Dolphins but was released a short time later because of an injury.

He returned to the Patriots for the 2006 season but was on injury reserve the entire season.

Rodriguez said she did not know who Jones was until long after the incident.

Milton Valencia can be reached at mvalencia@globe.com.