Joe Francis Freed on Bail After Surrendering to Pacific Division Police

Girls Gone Wild founder Joe Francis was freed on bail Monday evening, after surrendering to police.

According to LAPD Sgt. Daryl Martin, Francis walked into the LAPD’s Pacific Division on Culver Boulevard in Mar Vista at approximately 6 p.m. Monday, accompanied by his attorney.

“He was booked, fingerprinted and his photo was taken,” Martin said. Francis, who had been named on a warrant citing misdemeanor false imprisonment, was held at the station until he posted $50,000 bail.

Although Martin had no further details at the time, celebrity website TMZ reported early Tuesday morning that Francis was charged with three misdemeanor counts of false imprisonment and one count of dissuading the witness from making a report.

TMZ states that three women said they met Francis at a nightclub and he offered to drive them to their car in his limo. However, he took them to his mansion, despite the women saying they did not wish to go there.

Francis, 38, has been in and out of trouble with the law since he founded the highly successful Girls Gone Wild video series.

In 2008, four women unsuccessfully filed suit against Francis in Florida, claiming the soft porn mogul filmed them while they were underage.

In 2009 Francis pleaded guilty to withholding more than half a million dollars in his tax returns, as well as smuggling in contraband to give to jail employees in exchange for food during the two and a half years he was incarcerated.

City News Service contributed to this report.