Police: Tony Ayala Death Appears To Be Drug Overdose
By Edward Chaykovsky
As previously reported, 52-year-old Tony Ayala Jr. was found dead Tuesday morning at his West Side gym in San Antonio. Ayala Jr. was found slumped over at the Zarzamora Street Gym in San Antonio.
The Houston Chronicle notes a police report states that Ayala likely died from a drug overdose. Local authorities wrote in a police report that a syringe filled with narcotics and a ball of heroin wrapped in tape were found on a desk inside the gym, along with a cooker cap and spoon. There were so sign of trauma, other than an injury suffered from what appears to be Ayala's head hitting the floor.
“The death appears to be an overdose at this time,” the police report states.
The Bexar County Medical Examiner has yet to release an official cause of death.
Ayala was regarded as a top middleweight contender with a record of 31 wins, 27 knockouts and 2 losses overall. His career came to stop when he was arrested for rape in New Jersey in 1983, and once convicted he then served 16 years in prison before being released in 1999.
He staged a comeback once released and had eleven fights before his career once against came to halt in 2003, as he was once again incarcerated in 2004. The troubled fighter served 10 years in prison in Texas as a result of a parole violation. It was during that 11-fight run when he suffered his only two career defeats, to Yori Boy Campas and Anthony Bonsante.
