UFC bantamweight Casey Kenney has been arrested and charged after an alleged kidnapping incident on July 21.
Phoenix Police arrested Kenney on Friday. He faces two felony charges: one for kidnapping and one for aggravated assault (strangulation); as well as four misdemeanors: three for assault, one for disorderly conduct.
Kenney, 33, made his initial court appearance Saturday and is due back in Maricopa County (Ariz.) court Thursday for a status conference. He also has a preliminary hearing scheduled for Monday.
According to a statement MMA Junkie obtained Wednesday from Phoenix Police Department spokesperson Brian Bower, police responded to a domestic violence call. Paramedics treated the woman for injuries on scene.
“On July 22, 2024, around 12:15 p.m., officers responded to an unknown [sic] trouble call in the area of [address redacted]. Officers located an adult female victim with some visible abrasions reporting a domestic violence assault. The female was treated by paramedics and interviewed by investigators. No contact was made with the suspect at that time. This case is still active.”
The Scrap first reported Kenney’s arrest with details provided in a statement of probable cause first provided by MMA Fighting.
The statement says Kenney repeatedly struck, slapped, bit, head-butted, and choked a woman over the course of 13 hours while not allowing her to leave his residence. Kenney also allegedly threatened the woman and said if anyone showed up for her, he’d kill them.
A woman who identifies herself as the alleged victim’s mother has posted updates about the situation on Instagram in recent weeks.
Once a rising bantamweight contender in the UFC, Kenney competed eight times in the promotion from 2019 to 2021 and appeared on Dana White’s Contender Series twice in 2017. Kenney has not competed since an August 2021 loss to Song Yadong.
In recent years, Kenney has remained out of the spotlight and has not posted on social media. He has yet to comment on the matter publicly. He’s currently listed on the UFC roster as “not fighting.”
