US immigration authorities have arrested 39-year-old Mexican boxer Julio Cesar Chavez Jr in Los Angeles and are planning to deport him, they said Thursday, July 3. He was arrested just days after losing a high-profile fight to American rival Jake Paul on June 28.
Why It Matters
According to Reuters, the US Department of State said boxer Chavez remained in the country illegally last week after making fraudulent statements on his application for permanent residency in 2024. He is married to a US citizen, the department said.
More than two dozen immigration agents arrested Chavez at his home in the Studio City area of Los Angeles on Wednesday, according to his lawyer, Michael Goldstein.
Goldstein called the allegations against Chavez โabsolutely outrageousโ and said he felt they seemed to be fabricated headlines to scare the community.
On the other hand, Homeland Security has stated that Chavez Jr is suspected of having ties to Mexicoโs Sinaloa Cartel (a drug trafficking transnational organized crime syndicate), which Washington has designated as a foreign terrorist organization.
The arrested boxerโs father is Mexican fighter Julio Cesar Chavez, who held the WBC middleweight title from 2011 to 2012.
His wife, Frida Munoz Chavez, 37, was previously married to the son of Sinaloa cartel leader Joaquin โEl Chapoโ Guzman, who is serving a life sentence in a US prison, according to Reuters.
The boxer is the target of an arrest warrant in Mexico, where he faces charges of organized crime and firearms trafficking, according to the DHS.
The boxer was temporarily allowed to enter the United States in early January during the tenure of former President Joe Biden, DHS said. Chavez had previously stayed beyond the expiration of his tourist visa.
According to the agency, Chavez was previously convicted of weapons charges in Los Angeles in 2024. Goldstein denied the conviction of Chavez, saying he was not guilty and had been given mental health options that would result in the charges being dismissed.
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The Mexican boxer won the WBC middleweight championship in 2011. But Chavez lost the title the following year.
Chavez faced a suspension after testing positive for a banned substance in 2009 and was fined and suspended after testing positive for marijuana in 2013, including a career overshadowed by controversy.
His boxing career has a record of 54 wins, six losses, and one draw, 34 of which were knockouts.
Reuters reporting contributed to this article.