Macon Council member Virgil Watkins, Jr., who is about to take a seat on the new Macon-Bibb County Commission, was arrested by Macon police and taken to jail Monday.
He was released Monday night after three hours in custody, according to the Bibb County jail website.
Watkins told 13WMAZ's Jennifer Moulliet he was jailed for not paying a fine in Dooly County for an expired tag. He said he forgot to pay the fine.
An officer took him into custody Monday afternoon after a traffic stop in Macon. It was not immediately clear why he was stopped, but Watkins says the officer was just doing his job, and it was his own fault that he didn't pay the fine.
Watkins, 29, is chairman of the city council's public safety committee.
Macon police spokeswoman Jami Gaudet said officers found that Watkins was wanted on a warrant in Dooly County for failure to appear in court.
Watkins was elected to the District 8 seat on the new Macon-Bibb County commission in a runoff in October. District 8 covers portions of west Macon and downtown.
