Authorities arrested a 90 Day Fiancé: Before The 90 Days star recently in connection to a past charge. Ben Rathbun, who viewers may know from his current Season 5 storyline with the Peruvian Mahogany Roca, was booked early Tuesday morning with a bond set at $10,000. The arrest is related to a previous OUI charge.
News quickly circulated about Ben Rathbun’s arrest, though the details at first were not accurate. TMZ originally reported Rathbun’s arrest was the result of an OUI (operating while under the influence of alcohol) charge and driving with a suspended license in his home state of Michigan. In actuality, Rathbun’s arrest came from his failure to appear at a probation hearing which was scheduled back on February 7th.
Ben Rathbun’s OUI charge happened back in 2020, and a judge sentenced the 90 Day Fiancé star to 18 months probation in January 2021. A judge issued a bench warrant after Rathbun didn’t appear at his latest hearing, which then gave authorities reason to arrest the reality star. It’s unknown if any other incident preceded the arrest at this time. His next court hearing takes place Monday, March 21st.
The ordeal is just the latest incident for 90 Day Fiancé, whose latest spinoff season of Before The 90 Days features what might be among if not the most scandalous cast in franchise history. Ben Rathbun’s arrest in the midst of the season’s airing on TLC adds to the removal of Alina Kozhevnikova due to controversial social media posts. Not long after, Mike Berk came under fire for his own controversial social media posts. All of this news exists outside the actual drama of the season, which featured plenty of unsavory moments like the fight after Gino Palazzolo sent his girlfriend Jasmine Pineda’s nudes to an ex without her consent.
As far as drama concerning Ben Rathbun outside of this latest development, 90 Day Fiancé fans wondered for a time if his girlfriend Mahogany Roca was actually a real person. Once that was dispelled, questions surfaced about the two’s romance when evidence of Mahogany attending an acting school surfaced online (via ScreenRant), and a past interview with Rathbun revealed producers from the show contacted him after seeing his photo in a magazine (via The Celeb Talk Guy). It’s possible the two met legitimately and attempted a real relationship, but given accusations by past cast members of 90 Day Fiancé manufacturing storylines, the worry is always there something is being “faked” (like Ximena Morales’ recent allegations about producers asking her children to say lines) for entertainment purposes.
In short, Rathbun's been a notable TV personality during his run. Right now, the jury is still out on whether or not Ben Rathbun and Mahogany Roca are still dating after the season. A recent photo on Reddit surfaced of the two walking around a mall in Lima, Peru, so it seems the two are still together. We’ll just have to wait and see for sure, though, and continue to see what comes from this probation violation.
90 Day Fiancé: Before The 90 Days airs over on TLC on Sundays at 8:00 p.m. ET. Season 9 of 90 Day Fiancé isn’t far out, so be sure to read up a bit on the cast before the premiere on Sunday, April 17th.
