Rob Has a Website All the Survivor winners
In the world of reality TV, tt’s not usually the stars of Survivor that you hear about going to jail, but there have been a few over the years — and one of them was arrested shortly after winning his season. In case you haven’t heard, here’s what you need to know about Jud “Fabio” Birza’s arrest and where he is now.
Birza Was Arrested and Went on a Rambling Tirade About the Police
In January 2011, Birza, who had just been crowned the winner of Survivor: Nicaragua a few weeks prior, was arrested in Santa Monica, California, for suspicion of being under the influence of a controlled substance, according to TMZ. When he was booked, they charged him with riding a skateboard in the street, which is illegal, an unrelated DUI warrant, and a probation violation — and he definitely was not happy about it.
“Dude, this is such bullsh*t. Dude, we’re at Santa Monica Police Department and they f*cking sat us … dude, I sat at the bottom and got treated … dude, got treated like a baby!” he told TMZ at the time.
In his rambling video, Birza went on to say, “I was skateboarding and the f*cking cop thought that … I was cruising down the street and he thought that I — this lady honked at me and I just turned around and the light is red anyways, and he thought I flipped her off and gave me a stopping the flow of traffic ticket and a summons. I don’t even think it’s going to go through.”
Birza was held on a $37,000 bond, which he easily took care of considering he had just won a million dollars on Survivor. Then his friends picked him up in a stretch limo. They popped open some beers right then and there and rode away.
Since his time in the spotlight, Birza has gotten married, welcomed a daughter, and plays with the bands Space Funk Odyssey and Space Babies. As far as his modeling/acting career goes, he appeared on the cover for “City of Lost Souls,” the fifth book in the “Mortal Instruments” series and he starred on the Syfy TV movie 90210 Shark Attack.
Survivor: Nicaragua Was a Weird Season
This was the season known for dividing the tribes into Old vs. Young. It culminated in Birza being the youngest winner in the show’s history, and along the way, two people quit at one Tribal Council, which resulted in Survivor changing the rules — a quitter was from then on considered in violation of his or her contract and if they quit after having made it to the jury phase, they would be excluded from the jury.
Chase Rice finished runner-up to Birza and then he went on to notoriety by appearing on Peter Weber’s season of The Bachelor. He showed up as a musical guest and an ex-boyfriend of contestant Victoria Fuller.
Survivor hopes to film season 41 in the spring of 2021 for a fall 2021 premiere.
READ NEXT: ‘Survivor’s’ Jeff Probst on When He Thinks the Show Will End