Cris Cyborg Charged With Misdemeanor Battery For Punching Angela Magana
Cyborg has been officially charged for punching Angela Magana at last weekend’s UFC fighter retreat from Las Vegas.
According to a report from MMA Junkie’s Steven Marrocco, officer Larry Hadfield of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) revealed that Justino was cited for misdemeanor battery for the incident after receiving a call to the JW Marriott in Las Vegas at approximately 2:30 p.m. yesterday (Sun., May 21, 2017).
The LVMPD investigated the scene and then cited Justino after Magana stated she wanted to press charges. Magana reportedly transported herself to the hospital to treat minor injuries, and later denied that a TMZ Sports recounting of the scenario was true. The charges will now be reviewed by the Clark County district attorney’s office, who will decide to press official charges on Justino or not.
Officer Hadfield described the call as a ‘minor crime,’ noting that it was among the lower of those they routinely deal with:
“This is a misdemeanor crime, which is the lowest of Nevada penalties,” said Hadfield. “When they found probable cause to believe the crime had occurred, they cited that other individual. For us, it’s a very minor call, I guess you could say.”
Magana later confirmed she had not suffered the loss of a tooth as had been speculated, showing a photo of herself online. She said all the details would come out when the police report was released, and said it was the UFC rather than herself who had contacted police.
With several supposedly ‘sue-happy’ lawyers contacting her to get a suit brewing against Cyborg, Magana said she hadn’t decided to take that route yet but did press charges for the assault.
Overall, it’s the last thing Cyborg needs to deal with, as her public discontent with the UFC has recently bubbled over into a public spat, with a potential interim featherweight title fight against Megan Anderson in the works for July’s UFC 214.
It’s difficult to say if this incident will have any affect on that potential fight happening, but overall it’s safe to say that it’s simply not a good look for the woman who most consider to be the greatest pound-for-pound female fighter in UFC history – and perhaps ever.
Cyborg will now face potential charges from the Clark County DA’s office, with the maximum punishment being six months in jail and a $1,000 fine. But with Officer Hadfield downplaying the arrest as one of the lowest kinds of crimes the LVMPD usually deals with, her charges could be reduced to only community service.
Her discord with Magana surfaced after “Her Majesty,” a UFC women’s strawweight who hasn’t fought since a 2015 submission loss to Michelle Waterson, repeatedly made fun of her physical appearance and past use of steroids in numerous Twitter posts. Now, it’s up to the courts to decide if Cyborg should be dealt legal punishment for the assault, which was posted online in a video from Cagepages.com earlier today.
Does Cyborg deserve to face the music for punching Magana, or did the outspoken trash talker simply get what she deserves in your opinion?