Former UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez was denied bail on Monday during his indictment at the Santa Clara County Hall of Justice in San Jose, California.
After about 25 minutes of hearings on both sides, Judge Shelina Brown denied Velasquez bail. Judge Brown called his alleged actions “reckless” and said “the risk is too great.” Velazquez will appear in court on April 12.
Velasquez, 39, was arrested on Feb. 28 after allegedly shooting a man who targeted another man, Harry Gularte, 43, accused of molesting a family member possibly “100 times.”
Velázquez is charged with attempted murder (one count), shooting at a car or aircraft (one count), assault with a firearm (three counts), assault with a deadly weapon (three counts), and intentionally firing a gun. weapons from a vehicle (one count each) and carrying a loaded firearm with the intent to commit a crime (one count each).
If Velasquez is found guilty of attempted murder, he faces 20 years to life in prison under the California Penal Code. He faces additional time if found guilty on other counts.
A police report filed by Detective Joel Martinez confirms that Goulart was recently charged with molesting a “close relative” of Velasquez and was released from prison last Friday. For the past two years, Velasquez has hired Patricia Gularte, Harry’s mother, as a caregiver.
Martinez said an investigation found police arrived at 3:14 p.m. at the scene of the shooting, which reportedly took place at multiple locations. When the police arrived, they saw a Chevy Silverado. Three people were in the car, including Patricia Goulart, Harry Goulart and Paul Bender, who was wounded in the shootout and taken to a nearby hospital.
A police investigation revealed that Velasquez crashed his Ford F250 into the side of the Silverado in front of witnesses. He then followed Silverado and fired two shots, one of which hit Bender in the arm. A total of five shell casings were found at the scene. Police later identified Velasquez as the shooter.
Velázquez was arrested without incident, and a .40 semi-automatic pistol was found in his car. Two shell casings and ammunition were found in the car.
“It is a sad tragedy that Mr. Velasquez chose to take the law into his own hands, endangering the public and everyone in the truck,” Santa Clara County District Attorney Jeff Rosen said last Wednesday. “This act of violence also causes more pain and suffering to his family.”
As the motive behind Velasquez’s alleged actions became known, many fighters and figures in the MMA community rallied to support him on social media, and the #FreeCain hashtag is gaining momentum.
Velasquez withdrew from mixed martial arts competition following a February 2019 knockout loss to current UFC Heavyweight Champion Francis Ngannou. He later competed as a professional wrestler in WWE from 2019 to 2020. Most recently, he has been involved with Mexican wrestling promotion Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide.