UFC fighter Thiago Silva charged with aggravated assault, jailed without bond
UFC light heavyweight Thiago Silva is being held Friday without bond in a Broward County, Fla., jail after having been charged with aggravated assault and other charges following a standoff with police Thursday.
An incident began at the Pablo Popovitch Mixed Martial Arts Academy in Oakland Park, Fla., at approximately 8 p.m. ET on Thursday. Silva, who was armed, reportedly threatened several people inside the academy, and then retreated to his home.
A police SWAT team from the Broward County Sheriff's office surrounded his home. NBC News 6 in Miami reported that sheriff's officials told the station at 11:15 p.m. ET, or slightly more than three hours after the incident began, that Silva was in custody.
When he was arrested, Silva was booked on two counts of attempted murder, aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and resisting an officer without violence. At a bond hearing where he was denied bail because of a concern he would be a flight risk, the attempted murder charges were dropped.
The judge was going to post bond at $2.5 million, but prosecutors were concerned about a risk of flight and that he would be a danger to his wife if released. The judge then decided to hold Silva without bail.
UFC president Dana White had only a brief comment for Yahoo Sports on Friday.
"I'll tell you what I told TMZ: This guy will never fight again in the UFC," White said Friday. White declined further comment until he had more information.
The UFC released the following statement later: "The Ultimate Fighting Championship has terminated the contract of Thiago Silva effective immediately."
Glenn Robinson, Silva's manager, did not return messages to Yahoo Sports.
According to NBC News 6 in Miami, Silva made an obscene gesture to reporters as he was brought into the jail early Friday.
The Sun-Sentinel newspaper quoted a witness, 22-year-old Suzi Forum, who said the incident began at about 8 p.m. ET.
