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TAMPA --
Former major-league baseball player Elijah Dukes faces charges of marijuana possession and destroying evidence after his arrest early Thursday.
Tampa police pulled over Dukes' orange Chevy Camaro for a routine traffic stop at Nebraska and Sligh avenues at 1:08 a.m. today, according to an arrest report.
When officers approached him, they saw flakes of marijuana on Dukes' shirt, the report said. Dukes, 27, who played for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in 2007, was also trying to eat a small bag of pot, police said.
Dukes, of 5528 Liberty Plain Circle, Tampa, was charged with tampering with physical evidence, possession of less than 20 grams of cannabis, possession of drug paraphernalia and three counts of driving with a canceled or suspended license, according to the sheriff's office.
He was in a county jail Thursday morning with bail set at $4,750.
Records show that since 2001, Dukes has been arrested dozens of times, including charges related to domestic violence, failure to pay child support and marijuana possession. Most of the charges were not prosecuted or were dismissed.
Dukes, the Rays' third-round pick in 2002 out of Hillsborough High, also played for the Washington Nationals in 2008 and 2009. He was released by Washington during spring training in 2010.
In February 2011, he said he was beginning a new career as a rapper, going by the name "Fly Eli."
He told The Tampa Tribune he believed he was blackballed by baseball after he came forward last year with allegations that fellow players were smuggling drugs onto chartered aircraft, using drugs in hotel rooms after flights and how he would sometimes smoke marijuana before home games when he played for the Nationals.
Dukes had suspensions in the major and minor leagues for various confrontations with umpires, coaches and teammates while in Tampa Bay's organization.
Former major-league baseball player Elijah Dukes faces charges of marijuana possession and destroying evidence after his arrest early Thursday.
Tampa police pulled over Dukes' orange Chevy Camaro for a routine traffic stop at Nebraska and Sligh avenues at 1:08 a.m. today, according to an arrest report.
When officers approached him, they saw flakes of marijuana on Dukes' shirt, the report said. Dukes, 27, who played for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in 2007, was also trying to eat a small bag of pot, police said.
Dukes, of 5528 Liberty Plain Circle, Tampa, was charged with tampering with physical evidence, possession of less than 20 grams of cannabis, possession of drug paraphernalia and three counts of driving with a canceled or suspended license, according to the sheriff's office.
He was in a county jail Thursday morning with bail set at $4,750.
Records show that since 2001, Dukes has been arrested dozens of times, including charges related to domestic violence, failure to pay child support and marijuana possession. Most of the charges were not prosecuted or were dismissed.
Dukes, the Rays' third-round pick in 2002 out of Hillsborough High, also played for the Washington Nationals in 2008 and 2009. He was released by Washington during spring training in 2010.
In February 2011, he said he was beginning a new career as a rapper, going by the name "Fly Eli."
He told The Tampa Tribune he believed he was blackballed by baseball after he came forward last year with allegations that fellow players were smuggling drugs onto chartered aircraft, using drugs in hotel rooms after flights and how he would sometimes smoke marijuana before home games when he played for the Nationals.
Dukes had suspensions in the major and minor leagues for various confrontations with umpires, coaches and teammates while in Tampa Bay's organization.
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