Whatever Happened To Phoenix Jones: The Real-Life Superhero-Turned-Villain?

In 2009, the citizens of Seattle, Washington, were in for a surprise when a new sort of superhero hit the streets: A real one. It wasn't long before Phoenix Jones — a character clad in a black-and-gold outfit straight out of a '90s superhero production — became a media sensation. This self-proclaimed Guardian of Seattle fought crime for years, and was credited with stopping car thieves, breaking up potential fights, preventing stabbings, and, at one point, was even rumored to have foiled a potential terrorist plot. But things changed for the vigilante when he was arrested in January 2020 for allegedly selling drugs to undercover police officers.

This wasn't the first legal trouble that Jones ran into over the years, however. Back in 2011, he was arrested during an assault investigation and forced to publicly unmask himself as former MMA fighter Ben Fodor, though he was never charged. But his 2020 arrest was a bit more complicated. Considering the Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) he was accused of selling to undercover cops and the four additional grams of cocaine recovered from the scene, many have wondered what happened to the self-professed hero, as Jones turned out to be a superhero one arguably wouldn't want to meet in real life.

David Weinberg — host of "The Superhero Complex" podcast that examined real-life superheroes — explained to The Guardian in 2022 that Jones was on felony probation following his 2020 arrest. Yet not even that fully prevented the former fighter from continuing to pursue the welfare of the Emerald City.

Prior to his arrest in 2020, Phoenix Jones had all but retired. Having been a key member of the Rain City Superhero Movement until he dissolved the group in 2014, Jones inspired many copycat vigilantes throughout the 2010s. In fact, he showed up at the premiere of James Gunn's "Super," a film about an ordinary man (Rainn Wilson, aka Dwight from "The Office") who becomes a real-life superhero. But with more and more controversy, the vigilante wasn't sure he was doing the sort of good that he'd once hoped.

In a 2019 interview with the "NW Nerd Podcast," an unmasked Ben Fodor explained that his time as a costumed figure was over, having become disheartened concerning his efforts through the years. "The difference was supposed to be the people who saw (a superhero), being inspired to not act this way anymore," he explained (via MyNorthwest). "We have not gotten that lesson. We didn't get it at all. The shots. The stabbings. The bullets. It wasn't worth it. No one got it." With that, Phoenix Jones faded from the limelight — until about a year later, when Fodor was arrested.

But perhaps the ex-vigilante's bust was also a wake-up call. Since his last arrest, Fodor jumped back into action on a limited basis, mostly just tracking down stolen cars, which he posted about as recently as September 2023 on his Instagram. The former hero can be seen occasionally back in his old costume, still known as Phoenix Jones but operating without the mask.