Former UFC champion BJ Penn has requested a court to recall bench warrants issued for his arrest, claiming that a COVID-19 infection prevented him from appearing at scheduled hearings this week.
The 46-year-old, who was arrested twice over the past weekend, faces charges related to “abuse of family or household member: offensive physical contact” following altercations with an elderly woman.
According to KHON2, Penn has asked the court to withdraw the warrants that were triggered by his absence from court proceedings on separate charges related to family disputes.
The legal troubles for the Hall of Fame fighter have mounted significantly in recent days. Penn was first arrested Sunday evening following an incident with a 79-year-old woman in Hilo, Hawaii. TMZ Sports reports that the woman accused Penn of taking her mail and shining a bright flashlight in her eyes when she requested its return. She further alleged that Penn shoved her against a car when she attempted to move the light away.
After being released on $2,000 bail early Monday morning with a warning citation to avoid contact with the alleged victim, Penn was arrested again just hours later when he reportedly showed up at her residence, violating the order.
The situation has taken a bizarre turn as Penn claims the woman is an “imposter” pretending to be his mother, Lorraine Shin. In social media posts, Penn referred to her as a “fake Lorraine Shin” and alleged she “has tried to get me to assault her and she has already walked around my house with a gun when I asked her about my finances and my families finances.”
Penn’s actual mother has since filed for a restraining order against her son. Court documents indicate that Shin believes Penn is suffering from Capgras syndrome, a rare psychological disorder where a person believes close family members have been replaced by identical impostors.
“I believe my son is suffering from Capgras delusional syndrome,” Shin stated in court documents. “He believes I’m an imposter who has killed his family to gain control of the family assets.”
She further requested a six-month temporary restraining order and asked that her son be “ordered to get medical treatment or other source of therapy.”
Penn, who competed in the UFC between 2001 and 2019, captured world titles in two weight divisions during his illustrious career before being inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame. His recent concerning behavior includes disturbing social media posts claiming his mother and brothers were “all murdered” and replaced by people trying to “steal everything from his family.”
Seeing Penn turn to Covid as an excuse is especially interesting considering he’s previously said that ‘CTE is as fake as the coronavirus’.
