A new wrinkle has been added to the story of UFC Lightweight Jeremy Stephens recent arrest. As most should already know, Stephens was picked up by Minneapolis police only hours before his scheduled fight with Yves Edwards at UFC On FX 5. UFC president Dana White made a big stink about the ignorant media declaring the fight fight off (they didn’t) as he struggled to get Stephens released in time for the event (he didn’t).
Shortly after, Stephens camp put out a statement maintaining his innocence and he was released two weeks later. Today, Fight Opinion published a couple documents in relation to the proceedings. First was an Order of Protection signed on October 12, 2011 that required Jeremy to steer clear of his alleged victims as there was probable cause that he’d committed willful injury and assault causing bodily injury. Second was a request to increase his bond wherein it’s indicated that Stephens had been contacted about the arrest warrant:
1. The defendant was charged by complaint with Willful Injury and Serious Assault on October 20, 2011. Bond was set at $20,000 cash and $1,000 cash, respectively, pending the service of the arrest warrant.
2. The Des Moines Police Department has been notified that the defendant has been arrested on the warrant in the above-captioned case in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
3. The defendant is a professional mixed martial artist who travels the country to participate in mixed martial arts competitions.
4. The undersigned was contacted by attorney Matt Boles several months ago about the above-captioned case, which would indicate that the defendant is aware of the warrant. The defendant has not turned himself in on these charges prior to being arrested in Minneapolis.
5. Considering the nature of the charges, the defendant’s inclinations towards trael, and the length of time since the underlying incident occurred, the State requests that the bond be increased to protect the public and to insure the defendant’s presence at future court hearings.
The request to increase Stephens’ bond does not give any detail on the nature of the contact made by Boles. And it should be noted that Jeremy’s management has already stated that he was unaware of the warrant for his arrest. However, this document does seem to give reason to doubt their claim.
Stephens was expected to appear in court on October 23 following his release last week. As of yet, neither Stephens nor his management has given a statement on how it went. Bloody Elbow will continue to update you as we know more.
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