Billy Vunipola is standing in the living room of his house in Hertfordshire, rubbing his arm and explaining that he still has pins and needles in it, but isn’t sure whether it is a result of being tasered. Twice.
It was either that or having a mob of Policemen on his back, after the second stun shot knocked him to the floor in a Majorca bar. In his drunken, confused state, Saracens’ giant No 8 barely knew what was happening to him, but still flailed away instinctively as the officers pinned him down and tried to cuff him. One of them was hurt in the melee and big Billy ended up in court, where he was fined €240 and handed a suspended four-month prison sentence for resisting arrest.
Now, the 31-year-old has spoken exclusively to Mail Sport about the incident in the Balearics, during a club social trip last weekend, expressing his deep sense of remorse and regret. There is a serious, over-riding message about losing control on a night out and being left embarrassed, apologetic and upset – but also a self-deprecating theory about why the first taser didn’t have the intended effect.
All the drinks he had consumed have made memories hazy, so Vunipola said he can’t recall being asked to leave the bar. ‘I don’t remember that and I don’t remember getting tasered,’ he said. ‘I think I was going to walk out towards the door and as I walked towards the door, something hit me from the back.’
But that wasn’t enough to fell him, so a second attempt followed. ‘I’ve got two marks on me,’ said Billy. ‘Someone told me, “Those with more muscle get more affected by it (Taser) than those with a little bit more bedding”. I guess I was lucky I had a bit more belly because I didn’t feel it as much! Even when I was on the ground, they were shocked that I still had the energy to fight them – well, not fight them, resist them, which is what I got done for.’
Billy Vunipola has spoken exclusively to Mail Sport about being Tasered twice by police in Majorca just days ago
Saracens’ giant No 8 received a fine and four-month suspended prison sentence for an incident in a Majorca nightclub
Footage showed Vunipola laughing off being Tasered by police as they tried to eject him at 4.30am
As for the actual sensation of being hit by the Taser, he added: ‘I just remember a snippet of “Oohh” (pain). Next thing I knew, my head is on the ground and that was it.’
When news of the incident in Palma broke last Monday morning, there was considerable fascination about Vunipola’s ability to with-stand that first taser shot. But there was also a tide of outrage as sketchy rumours about the nature of the early-hours saga swirled around, before the exact facts had been fully established. It came across as if he had wildly threatened a bar full of terrified people, but that was far from the truth.
First of all, the context is pertinent. It was warm-weather jaunt for Saracens players and staff, before a ‘down’ week – the sort which has served them well in the past. ‘It’s once during the season and once in the off-season,’ said Vunipola. ‘The whole reason behind the trips is to get closer as a group and find out things about each other that you won’t necessarily share freely in the changing-rooms.
‘Drink helps that, to release inhibitions and help people open up more. I’ve been on a fair few trips, and they’ve always been a success, but obviously not last weekend, for me and for the club.
‘I caused a huge amount of embarrassment and put a spotlight on the club when they were trying to do something nice for us. It’s disappointing that I let what happened happen, by drinking too much. I am very sorry.’
For the man who was a main-stay of the England team for so long, winning 75 Test caps, it was a trip with ‘a lot of emotion behind it’, as it would be his last with Saracens before an end-of-season move to France. That was the primary factor behind his decision to drink alcohol again, for the first time since August 2022; a decision which eventually back-fired.
After a late-night dash home from a victorious close encounter in Bath, followed by a 6am flight to Palma the next day, the whole group spent several hours at a sea-front bar, before the younger Vunipola brother broke off – in a heavily inebriated state. He wound up at a bar called Epic, accompanied by Italy prop Marco Riccioni. That was where his outing unravelled so dramatically.
The first Taser had not effect on the No 8, but the second sent him staggering to the groundÂ
Officers pounced on and tried to cuff him as he fell to the floor, with one injured in the incident
Vunipola, who had previously stopped drinking, tells Mail Sport his issue is ‘just not knowing when to stop’
He admits that when he drinks he ‘gets to a place where I probably forget what I did’
‘My issue is just not knowing when to stop and that’s probably why I stopped drinking for so long,’ said Billy, with typical candour. ‘I’ve never really been a casual drinker. If I drink, I get to a place where I probably forget what I did.
‘That’s the reason why I had stopped and the reason why I had a drink (last weekend) was because it was my last ever trip with the boys and I wanted to really enjoy it, but obviously I went too far.’ He made clear that he had not been cajoled into it by team-mates, adding: ‘There’s no pressure. For the year-and-a-half when I didn’t drink, everyone just accepted it. It was my choice.’
The owner of the bar claimed that Vunipola had gone through four glasses of Amaretto, but he said: ‘I’d had way more than that. I’d had too much. There were some comments that my wife drinks that drink and it’s true. My issue was not taking my time with my drinking. Whatever drink I had, I’d just take the ice out and get stuck into it. I realised too late that I needed to calm down.’
Despite the state he was in, the way the situation escalated was a surprise. The fact that Vunipola kept removing his shirt aggravated staff at the bar, but there is also thought to have been some tension about who exactly took a tip which he had offered. That might have acted as a spark. Then security guards decided that removing a worse-for-wear 20st sportsman was a risky business, so they called for law-enforcement support.
‘When the incident happened, I was in shock about how significant the response was to me taking my top off,’ said Vunipola. ‘Obviously, it’s silly, but I was shocked. It looks like I’m laughing and joking, but I’m not laughing at them, or instigating anything, I was just shocked that I didn’t just get pushed out (by security).
‘The thing I do remember is them threatening (to call) the cops and me thinking, “Why? I haven’t done anything. Did I beat someone up?” They said, “No, you just won’t leave”. I know when I’m drunk, I don’t listen to anyone. That’s what it came down to; drinking way too much and not listening to what people were telling me to do.’
He admits that the incident came down to drinking too much and not listening to what he was told to doÂ
He denies threatening others in a bar, saying ‘it was never my intention to hurt anyone’
Police stormed the Epic bar in Palma to subdue Vunipola, who denies using a bottle or chair
So why keep taking his top off? Is that a personal habit? ‘I don’t know why I do it – it’s not like I’ve got a six-pack,’ he joked. ‘We had been at a beach club and had our tops off the whole day so I thought, “It must be alright”. I must have thought that. But when I’m drunk, I do normally take my shirt off.’
Early, local reports claimed he had threatened others in the bar, with bottles and chairs, creating an impression which was significantly exaggerated. When pressed on whether that happened, Vunipola said: ‘No, definitely not. I didn’t do that. The issue is that I forget how big I am sometimes, in a crowded place. I saw the interview that the (bar) owner did saying I was elbowing people, but I had no intention to be threatening.
‘I never touched a bottle and I never lifted a chair. If I had done, then I think that response (so many Police officers) would have been required. But I was in shock because that response came from me not wanting to leave a bar. It’s fair enough because it is their premises, but I deny those claims that I threatened people and tried to throw chairs, or bottle anyone.’
Someone was hurt though – one of the officers who came to the bar and had to restrain Vunipola. Once he had been tasered for the second time and went down, several Policemen leapt on his back and he didn’t react well to their attempts to bind his hands, so he struggled and feels bad that it caused a minor injury.
‘It was never my intention to hurt anyone,’ he said. ‘The recollection I have is that he was trying to put the zip-tie on my wrist and I tried to pull my wrist away. His hand and my hand got caught in it together. I just couldn’t comprehend why I was in that situation.’
That sense of shock and indignation which caused him to resist was why it was deemed necessary to sedate Vunipola and strap him to a bed after he had been taken to a local hospital. When he awoke, the realisation began to dawn about the grim predicament he was in, then he had to alert his family and the emotions shifted towards upset and guilt.
Vunipola admits that he is unsure why he took his top off but says he does it when drunk
Vunipola reveals how he broke down in tears when revealing the ordeal to wife Simmone (R)
‘I think the reason I got sedated was because I fought so hard when they were cuffing me,’ he said, before reflecting on how he felt when he woke up in hospital. ‘I was definitely confused. I remember thinking that it was all a dream and I was going to wake up.
‘I had to go to the toilet, but I wasn’t allowed to get up so I had one of those plastic tanks. As soon as I did that, the doctor was happy enough for me to leave. They took me to a holding cell and that is when the lawyer met me.
‘I called my wife and had to explain to her what had happened. I remember saying, “I’m so sorry” and I started crying. I said, “This is the last thing you want to hear but I’m OK and they’re going to hold me until four (o’clock) when I will try to clear myself”.
‘They told me I’d be out at four, but I wasn’t out until nine (pm). As soon as I came out, I went straight to the hotel to sleep. I was just gutted and embarrassed. I was disappointed that I didn’t just get to enjoy the time. I ruined it for myself and for everyone else.’
Speaking to his mother – a methodist preacher – was another difficult, chastening moment. ‘That was a tough conversation – trying to explain to her the reasons why I did it,’ added Billy. ‘Her trying to understand and the look of disappointment on her face was enough.’
The reaction of his team-mates and coaches was largely supportive, although frank discussions took place which led to a letter and stern rebuke about his conduct from Saracens. He fully accepted their stance and admitted that they have given him the benefit of the doubt many times during more than a decade of service to the club.
‘It’s tough for me to say what I’m like,’ said Vunipola, when asked how he would vouch for his own character, as so many people have formed negative perceptions this week. ‘I’ve been at the club for 11 years and I do silly things all the time, but they always seem to forgive me and accept me for who I am. I think that’s because they know that these things are in my personality, to kick out and rebel.
‘It’s hard to describe myself off the back of this, but I’m normally not like that and that’s what is the most embarrassing and disappointing thing; that I let that be what defines me. Well, that’s how other people will define me, but what’s important is that I know it doesn’t define who I am.’
Having opened up on his alcohol issues, the No 8 will now turn his attention to on-field matters
In the time between August 2022 and last weekend, Vunipola felt as if he had become defined by his obsession to stay off alcohol, so he is not certain that he will just revert to being fully teetotal. But he does recognise how occasional, excessive binges have impacted on those around him.
Asked why he had chosen to stop drinking, he said: ‘It was a performance thing, but also a marriage decision. I can’t just have two beers. If you’re doing what I was doing in Majorca, or to a lesser extent, every weekend, it’s going to take a toll on your marriage. I needed to break that cycle. I reasoned with it when I drank at the weekend, saying, ‘It’s my last trip (with Saracens) and we’ve just had a good win, the boys are happy, but I just got too excited.’
Now he will seek excitement with on-field objectives. Before a new adventure begins across the Channel, Vunipola will strive to make amends and ensure he can enjoy a fitting farewell after being at the heart of such a successful era at Saracens.
‘It’s almost made my vision clearer in terms of what I want the end of the season to look like,’ he said. ‘My intention is to give my everything for the team. It isn’t just myself leaving, there are quite a few of us leaving and we all want to go out on a high, so we have to turn up and really prepare, especially myself. I have to narrow my focus and not let this define who I am at the club.’
