Former welterweight world titleholder Victor Ortiz, who is scheduled to headline a Premier Boxing Champions card on Sunday night, turned himself in to the Oxnard (California) Police Department on Tuesday and was booked on three felony sexual assault charges.
His bail was set at $100,000.
Ortiz is scheduled to fight John Molina Jr. in a 12-round welterweight bout at Citizens Business Bank Arena in Ontario, California. It remains to be seen if the fight or the card will go ahead as scheduled. Premier Boxing Champions and promoter Tom Brown could not be reached for comment.
Ortiz turned himself in at approximately 3 p.m. PT, and was charged by the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office with forcible rape, forcible oral copulation and forcible digital penetration, according to the police report.
On March 19, an adult female contacted the Oxnard Police Department and said she was sexually assaulted inside a home in Oxnard, according to the police report. The Oxnard Police Department’s Family Protection Unit responded to the call and took over the criminal investigation, and the suspect was eventually identified as Ortiz, 31, a former Oxnard resident now living in Tarzana, California.
The police report said that after several months of investigating by the Family Protection Unit, the case was presented to the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office and a warrant was issued for Ortiz’s arrest.
Ortiz (32-6-3, 25 KOs), once one of boxing’s brightest up-and-coming stars, has seen his career badly fade since he lost his world title by fourth-round knockout to Floyd Mayweather in 2011. Including that fight, Ortiz is 3-4-1 in his past eight bouts and has earned a reputation for lacking heart in fights because of how he has quit in some losses.
He is coming off a disputed 12-round draw with former two-division world titlist Devon Alexander in February. A victory against former world title challenger Molina (30-7, 24 KOs) potentially could position Ortiz for a more meaningful bout.
Outside of boxing, Ortiz made a name for himself with a 2013 appearance on ABC’s “Dancing With the Stars.” He has also landed various acting roles in movies such as “Southpaw” and “Expendables 3.”
The Ventura County Star, which first reported Tuesday’s charges against Ortiz, also detailed his past legal issues. In October 2017, Ortiz pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor DUI charge stemming from a Sept. 24, 2016, arrest and was given three months’ probation. On July 25, 2015, Ortiz was arrested on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon after allegedly beating up a fan during a Kenny Chesney concert at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena. He pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor battery charge and received three years of probation.
