Tony Martin charged with assault on law enforcement officer
Martin has pleaded not guilty and remains free on bail following his December arrest.
Tony Martin (aka Anthony Rocco Martin), who fought for the UFC between 2014-2020, and last competed under the CES banner, was arrested on December 21, 2022, in Bonita Springs, Florida. Deputies charged Martin with assault on a law enforcement officer.
According to police reports obtained by Bloody Elbow, deputies from the Lee County Sheriff’s Office responded to an abandoned 911 call (whereby a caller hangs up before speaking to the dispatcher) at an address in Bonita Springs. The report notes that the deputies had “just previously been at this location for a verbal disturbance.”
Once deputies arrived at the Bonita Springs address, they encountered a crying “white female” in a black Ford Expedition. The woman informed the deputies that “she just wanted to leave.”
While speaking to the woman, a “white male,” who was later identified as Martin, approached the deputies in the residence’s front yard. The report says Martin “appeared inebriated” and told the deputies to “get off my f–king property right now.”
When told by the deputies that an active investigation was underway, Martin reportedly responded, “I don’t care, and if you touch me, I will kick your ass.”
According to the report, Martin then “continued to escalate yelling and shouting statements such as, ‘I hate cops and you can suck my dick.’”
At that point, deputies reportedly restrained Martin after his “continuous attempts to square up face to face, in an aggressive posture with Deputies.”
While restrained, Martin reportedly said to one of the deputies, “You think you’re a bad man, if you take me out of these cuffs’ I will kick your ass.”
The report says the deputy later discovered Martin was a mixed martial artist and that because of the statements from Martin, the deputy “was in fear of physical harm from Martin.”
Martin was arrested and booked into the Lee County Justice Center at 5:16 am. He was bonded out of custody later that day, with a bail set at $5,000.
A hearing on the misdemeanor charge was scheduled for January 10, 2023, but Martin’s lawyer filed a request for a jury trial on a not-guilty plea. As a result, Martin remains free on $5,000 bail. He is scheduled to appear before a judge on February 22, 2023.
Martin was previously arrested in Las Vegas. In November 2021, he was charged with lewd/dissolute conduct in a public place after he reportedly punched a security guard in the throat after he was confronted for urinating in a hallway at Caesars Palace.
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