Cain Velasquez is officially out of jail. The former UFC-champion was granted bail this past Tuesday, November 8th, after spending months incarcerated over charges of the attempted murder of accused child molester Harry Goularte and the shooting of Goularte’s stepfather Paul Bender.
Velasquez had been denied bail on three previous occasions, with judge Shelyna Brown noting that the 40-year-old posed an immediate threat both to Goularte, his family, and the public at large. In his latest pre-trial hearing, however, judge Arthur Bocanegra agreed to a $1 million bond for Velasquez—given the former NCAA All-American’s lack of criminal record and unlikelihood to be a flight risk.
As he exited the Santa Clara County corrections facility in the early hours of Wednesday morning, Velasquez gave a brief statement to the media on his release.
“I feel great,” Velasquez said. “Just feel blessed, you know? Ready to go home, be with the loved ones, the family, friends, and make something positive out of this whole situation.
“Just, thank you to everybody who had my support. I love all of you. Just, always continue to be better as a person, always do good things; just make something positive of this terrible situation. My family and I, we’re going to do that.”
Velasquez currently faces 10 charges—including attempted premeditated murder—stemming from the vehicle chase and shooting in pursuit of Goularte, who has been accused of molesting a member of Velasquez’s family at the daycare center owned by Goularte’s parents. As a condition of his release, Velasquez will be confined to house arrest and must undergo treatment for possible CTE symptoms—something Velasquez’s lawyer has argued may have been a factor in the incident.
The longtime American Kickboxing Academy athlete and recent WWE professional wrestler is due back in court on November 21st for another pre-trial hearing.
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