Getty Simone Biles smiles during Women's Podium Training ahead of the Tokyo Olympic Games at Ariake Gymnastics Centre on July 22, 2021.
Ashley Biles-Thomas is the older sister of Olympic gymnast Simone Biles. Ashley is seven years older than Simone and lives in Ohio. They were separated when Simone was six.
Their relationship is unclear. Simone doesn’t appear to have any photos with Ashley on social media and Ashley either doesn’t post often or keeps her accounts fairly private. But in April 2021, she showed her support for Simone with a Facebook post. She shared a photo of Simone and wrote, “Ma sister is fire 🔥 she is the real G.O.A.T 🐐.”
Here’s what you need to know:
1. Ashley Biles-Thomas Was Arrested a Few Weeks Before the Start of the Olympics in Tokyo
Franklin County SheriffAshley Biles-Thomas, Simone Biles’ older sister, was arrested in early July.
Simone’s older sister currently has a court case pending in Columbus, Ohio. According to inmate records on the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office website, Biles-Thomas was arrested on July 6, 2021. As of this writing, she remained in custody.
She is facing several offenses. According to the sheriff’s office website, Biles-Thomas is accused of violating probation, driving while under the influence of drugs or alcohol (OMVI), driving while under suspension, leaving the scene of an accident on the highway (hit-skip), failing to yield at a stop sign and assault.
Public records on the Franklin County Municipal Court website show the incident happened on June 4, 2021, and a bench warrant was issued. The judge did not set a bond during the arraignment hearing. A jury trial was scheduled for August 5, 2021.
2. Biles-Thomas Was Still on Probation for a 2019 Assault Conviction, Court Records Show
Franklin County Municipal CourtAshley Biles-Thomas pleaded guilty to assault in 2019 and was put on probation.
Biles-Thomas’ most recent run-in with law enforcement took place just weeks before her probation was scheduled to end, according to public records on the Franklin County Municipal Court website .
The record shows Biles-Thomas was accused of being involved in an assault that happened on April 18, 2019. She entered a guilty plea on June 25, 2019. The court record suggests she was fined $1,000 and that the jail sentence was suspended. She was placed on probation for two years. The probation had been scheduled to end on June 24, 2021. A separate charge of criminal endangerment was dismissed.
Also in 2019, Biles-Thomas was accused of “illegal use of or possession of drug paraphernalia.” The charge was eventually dismissed. The record suggests that it was her biological mother, Shanon Biles, who posted the bond in that case. The court record spelled the first name “Shannon.”
3. Biles-Thomas Pleaded Guilty to Drug Trafficking in 2015
Delaware County Court of Common PleasAshley Biles-Thomas pleaded guilty to drug trafficking in 2015.
Biles-Thomas was arrested in Delaware County, Ohio, in June 2014, along with two others. Radar Online reported they were pulled over during a routine traffic stop.
According to the indictment, they were accused of trafficking drugs including oxycodone and oxymorphone. They were also charged with drug possession.
Biles-Thomas eventually pleaded guilty to one count of drug trafficking, according to the sentencing document publicly available on the Delaware County Court of Common Pleas website. The judge sentenced her to 90 days behind bars at the Delaware County Jail but she was discharged after just a few days. She was also put on probation for four years.
4. The Sisters Were Separated When Simone Was 6
Ashley Biles-Thomas, younger brother Tevin Biles-Thomas, and younger sisters Simone Biles and Adria Biles were born in Columbus, Ohio. In an expert of her memoir published by Parade, Simone gave this explanation of her early home life:
The woman who gave birth to me in Columbus, Ohio, was Poppa Biles’ daughter from a previous marriage. Her name was Shanon, and she’d mostly grown up with her mother in Columbus. Life ended up being a little rocky for Shanon, because as she grew older, she got caught up in drinking and drugs. When I came along on March 14, 1997, my older sister, Ashley, had just turned seven and my brother, Tevin, was almost three. Two years later, on January 27, 1999, my little sister Adria was born. By then, our life with Shanon had started to become difficult.
In 1999 or 2000, concerned neighbors contacted social services. The four siblings were put into foster care, though luckily they were kept together, Simone explained in a documentary for Facebook Watch.
By 2003, Simone and Adria were adopted by their grandparents and moved to Texas permanently. Simone refers to them as “the only real parents I’ve ever known” and calls them Mom and Dad.
The Washington Post reported Ashley and Tevin were adopted by their great-aunt in Cleveland. Ashley would have been about 13 at this time. The Wall Street Journal, citing Simone’s memoir, reported the older siblings had wanted to remain in Ohio rather than move to Texas.
5. Ashley Biles-Thomas Is a Mother
Biles-Thomas lives in Columbus, Ohio, according to online records. The Daily Mail interviewed her mother, Shanon Biles, in 2016. The outlet reported at the time that Biles-Thomas had a daughter who was 7 at the time.
Based on Biles-Thomas’ Facebook page, she has since had more children. She did not list any information about her work status on the account, at least on the public version of her account.
In mid-June 2021, Biles-Thomas wrote about their brother, Tevin, being acquitted of murder charges. He had been accused of killing three people at a New Year’s Eve party in 2018 but as the New York Times reported, the judge ruled there was not enough evidence to convict him.
Biles-Thomas posted on Facebook, “Yea maybe 🤔 our family has been tbrough alot and maybe ma sister did beat the odds but at the end of the day we are strong 💪🏽 ma brother was just ACQUITTED OF TRIPLE MURDER please dt judge a book by its cover read more into the book 😉.”
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