Boxer Has His Losing Purse Snatched by Gunman in Las Vegas Parking Lot

As if suffering the second loss of his professional career weren’t enough, boxer Diamond Jim MacDonald lost his earnings from the bout just hours later when a gunman robbed him in a Las Vegas parking lot.

“The police told me robberies like that are quite common out there,” the Nashville boxer said Wednesday. “They said there is a slight chance they might catch the guy, but as far as getting the money back, that’s gone.

“It wasn’t everything I had, but it might as well have been. It was nearly $6,000,” he said.

MacDonald (17-2) had lost a light-heavyweight bout to Grady Smith on the same card as the Michael Spinks-Larry Holmes fight in Las Vegas last Saturday.

After the fight, MacDonald said he cashed in his $6,000 share and went to the Stardust Hotel casino. When he left, MacDonald said, he was stopped in the hotel parking lot by the gunman, who had evidently seen him inside.

“He even told me what pocket to reach into--he didn’t ask for my wallet,” MacDonald said. “I hesitated a moment because I didn’t think he was serious. When I saw he was serious, I threw him the money and he ran off. I wasn’t about to chase him.”