More Shocking Details On The Nikki Garcia-Artem Chigvintsev Domestic Incident Revealed
10/04/2024 07:14 PM
As we previously reported here on eWn, Artem Chigvintsev recently filed for his own restraining order against Nikki Garcia, which was granted by a judge on Thursday. This is the same day Garcia was granted her restraining order against Chingvintsev in relation to the August 29th incident that saw the Dancing With the Star alum arrested for domestic battery. The incident resulted in Nikki Garcia filing for divorce on September 11th.
The New York Post is reporting that Chingvintsev was granted a restraining order on Thursday. Chingvintsev’s lawyer denies Garcia’s version of the events, and has issued a statement that reads as follows,
"It is crucial to consider the motivations of both parties in this situation. Mr. Chigvintsev contacted law enforcement on 8/29/24 seeking protection from his wife's persistent aggression. While he was on the phone with the police, Ms. Garcia-Colace made a pointed statement, saying, 'Do you understand where this is going now, Artem? You just ruined my career, and you know it.' That day, someone was going to be arrested, and it wouldn't have been Mr. Chigvintsev if Ms. Garcia Colace had told the truth. [Chigvintsev] denies ever tackling her. He was shocked to learn two weeks after the incident that she made this allegation against him; at that point it made sense to him why he was arrested. As a result of wife's self-serving statement, Mr. Chigvintsev's career suffered, with numerous opportunities being canceled due to these false allegations. Men can also be victims of domestic violence; Mr. Chigvintsev's case highlights this reality. He was not the primary aggressor."
In Chingvintsev's filing, he claims the argument on the morning of August 29th started when Garcia criticized him for not having their son's breakfast and packed lunch ready before school. Chingvintsev noted that Garcia was "stressed due to her job that was coming up," which was her co-hosting role on Netflix's Unfinished Beef special. He claims she berated him for doing nothing around the house or for their son, which he denies.
Chigvintsev claims Garcia verbally assaulted him as he and his son were headed toward the door to get ready for school. This is when he claims the argument escalated over what type of shoes their son would be wearing that day. Chigvintsev claims his wife "completely lost it and started screaming 'get the f**k out of my house, I am sick of all of it, I had enough'” before she "forcefully [threw] both of [their son]'s sneakers at me". He also claims she hit his chest with their son right next to him. He states, "[M]y first reaction was obviously safety of [the son] because he was standing right by my side."
As you’d expect, their son became “confused” and “looked frightened” as Garcia began screaming about wanting a divorce. This is when Chingvintsev says he "tried to deescalate the situation and take him upstairs to his room." Chingvintsev says Garcia followed him and attempted to force her way into the room. He states, "I could not hold it [the door], because she's quite strong" and that their son began crying. Chingvintsev says he was trying to control her "lack of self-control at the moment" so he pushed through the door to stop Garcia from coming in. As he pleaded for Nikki to calm down, a "mutual struggle [occurred], and both ended up on the ground."
Chingvintsev then says he went outside and called law enforcement and waited for them to arrive. He states, "I had no idea what she told the police, but to my surprise I ended up getting arrested. I was not the primary aggressor, she definitely was. Since the 8/29/24 incident, I learned on 9/13/24 that she lied to the police that I tackled her twice, which is absolutely false."
The judge overseeing the case says both Chingvintsev and Garcia will share joint custody of their son for the time being and "there shall be reasonable daily FaceTime contact between the child and non custodial parent." Additionally, neither side is allowed to "make negative statements about the other in the presence of hearing of the child or question the child about the other parent."
A hearing on the matter will be taking place on October 21st.
ORIGINAL: You can check out our report on Nikki Garcia’s side of the story below:
Nikki Garcia (Nikki Bella in WWE) has filed a restraining order against her estranged husband Artem Chigvintsev. The order was filed on Monday, and the judge signed off on it after Nikki submitted a sworn declaration to the court.
In her petition, Garcia revealed that Artem “tackled me multiple times and pinned me to the ground while our child was present.”
Garcia also claims that when Artem was fired from Dancing with the Stars, he grew “increasingly angry, snapping at me, and yelling.” The two reportedly talked about trying to control his anger, and Nikki says Artem went into a fit of rage on the morning of the incident that resulted in his arrest. The argument started over how their 4-year-old son’s English muffin should be toasted. Artem accused Nikki of making their son become a “picky eater.”
This led to Nikki throwing Matteo’s toddler-sized 7 shoes toward Artem, which resulted in Artem calling 911 to request a police presence. He called back minutes later to say that they were no longer needed. Despite this, the cops showed up anyway because a 911 call was made. Nikki claims the shoes hit Artem’s leg, but were “so light that they couldn’t have hurt him.”
After the shoes were thrown, Nikki says Artem grabbed their son and ran upstairs with him. The child was reportedly screaming “Mommy! Mommy!”
As Nikki went to attempt to get into the room, Artem opened the door and tackled her to the ground. He reportedly grabbed her arms and held her on the ground for what she says “felt like around 30 seconds.”
After Artem let go of his wife, he then went back into Matteo’s room and slammed the door. When she again tried to push the door open, he opened it and pushed her across the hallway into the couple’s bedroom. At that point, he pushed her onto the bathroom floor in their bedroom and had his hands on her chest near her sternum. Nikki says he was pressing down so hard that it felt like she was suffocating. In an attempt to get him off, she grabbed his neck.
When police arrived on scene several hours later, Matteo told them, “Daddy hurt my hand.” The responding officers also observed visible injuries on Nikki’s body, which resulted in Chigvintsev being taken into custody. He posted bond later that same day.
Nikki’s petition also claims Artem was physically violent on one prior occasion. Back in mid-2023, Artem “violently grabbed me around my waist” to keep her away from Matteo. Additionally, she says there have been numerous instances of verbal abuse over the years. Nikki believes Artem needs to get some help with therapy and anger management, and she wants to have space between her, Matteo, and her soon-to-be ex-husband.
The judge who signed off on the petition has ordered Artem to not contact the WWE Hall of Famer or come within 100 yards of her, their son, their home, etc. The only exception is for visitation or exchange of the child per court-ordered visits.
The judge denied a request for Nikki to be able to leave the country with their son until a full hearing is held on October 21. The reason she asked for this is because she wants to go to London to film a project.
Artem hasn’t been living in the home since August 29, the date of the incident. The judge says he will not grant a “move-out order” until the hearing takes place.
Nikki has since filed for divorce, which is expected to get nasty as it heads through the court system. Chigvintsev is currently unemployed and is already asking for spousal support.
As far as Matteo is concerned, Artem has been allowed visits and FaceTime calls with him since the incident.
A rep for Nikki Garcia told TMZ the following:
"Due to the incident that led to Artem's arrest on August 29, 2024, Nikki has decided to file for a temporary Domestic Violence Restraining Order to protect herself and her son. Although Nikki requested that the Napa District Attorney not file charges against Artem as she did not want him to go to jail, he must still be held accountable for his actions, and Nikki and her son must be protected. Nikki's number one priority has always been the wellbeing of her son. She is thankful for all of the love and support she has received and continues to ask for privacy for her and her family during this difficult time."
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