Cain Velasquez, the ex-UFC heavyweight champion, is set to be sentenced on October 18 after pleading no-contest to charges including attempted murder following a high-speed car chase and shooting incident involving a man accused of molesting his son.
Cain Velasquez is set to be sentenced by a judge in California after pleading no-contest to a variety of charges, including attempted murder.
The ex-UFC heavyweight champion will appear in court on Oct. 18 for his sentencing. His trial was initially scheduled to begin on Monday but has been avoided due to his plea deal with prosecutors.
The 42-year-old now faces anything from probation to a life sentence. However, the latter is highly unlikely given Velasquez’s agreement with the prosecution.
In an original statement addressing Velasquez’s decision to plead no-contest, the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s office emphasized that “he faces prison time.”
Assuming the sentencing proceeds as planned, Velasquez will soon discover his fate. He was first arrested back in February 2022.
He was detained and charged following an 11-mile high-speed car chase. The vehicle he pursued contained Harry Goularte, a man accused of molesting Velasquez’s son at a daycare owned by Goularte’s mother.
Velasquez fired several rounds from a .40-caliber handgun at the vehicle. One of the bullets struck Goularte’s stepfather, Paul Bender, in the arm, causing non-life-threatening injuries.
When the car chase ended, Velasquez was arrested without incident by the Morgan Hill Police Department. He faced numerous charges that kept him behind bars for eight months before being granted bail.
Following his arrest, the district attorney revealed that Velasquez’s phone search history included terms like “sexual assault case where victims family fights back” and “sexual assault cases where victims family retaliates.”
“This defendant decided to become judge, jury, and executioner,” said Santa Clara County district attorney Jeff Rosen. “His actions endangered innocent bystanders, including young children and their parents who could have been injured or killed as he shot at his intended victim. We have excellent law enforcement in this county. Let them do their jobs.”
Since being released, Velasquez has returned to coaching at American Kickboxing Academy in San Jose, Calif. He continues to work and even corners fighters competing in promotions like the UFC and Bellator.