Nick Lachey - reuters

SCOTTSDALE, Arizona (Reuters)

Former heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson was arrested in Arizona on Friday and charged with driving under the influence of drugs and possession of cocaine, police said.

Tyson was arrested in Scottsdale, 10 miles (16 km) east of Phoenix, Arizona, after his black BMW nearly collided with a sheriff's vehicle, according to court documents.

"During an interview with Mike he admitted to using today and stated he is an addict and has a problem," the arresting officer said in court documents. "Mike admitted to possessing bags of cocaine and said he uses any time he can get his hands on it."

Tyson appeared in court on Friday morning and was freed on supervised release, meaning he has to regularly report to officials for drug and alcohol monitoring, until he appears in court again on January 16, Superior Court of Arizona spokeswoman J.W. Brown said.

The 40-year-old boxer known as "Iron Mike" became Heavyweight Champion of the World when he was 21, but was later banned from fighting for a year and fined $2.85 million after he bit off part of an opponent's ear during a match in 1997.