Nikki Bella Not Wearing Wedding Ring After Artem’s Arrest
Nikki Garcia (formerly Nikki Bella) was spotted for the first time since husband Artem Chigvintsev was arrested for domestic violence.
The former WWE wrestler was seen without her wedding ring as she boarded a private plane out of Oakland, California, on August 31, according to E! News. Nikki, 40, had her and Artem’s 4-year-old son, Matteo, with her as she unloaded luggage from an SUV before boarding the plane.
On Thursday, August 29, TMZ reported that Artem, 42, placed a call to 911 for a “medical emergency” at around 8:30 a.m. The outlet also obtained an audio clip of the phone call, and the dispatcher said that “he got into an argument with his wife and his wife threw shoes at [the reporting party].”
Continuing, the dispatcher added, “There is a child on scene. Medical en route. There’s an active 415 [disturbing the peace] in the background responsible.”
The Dancing With the Stars pro called back and canceled the request while paramedics were en route. However, authorities eventually showed up later in the day and Artem was detained and arrested. He was booked on California penal code 273.5(a) which “makes it illegal to injure a spouse, cohabitant or fellow parent in an act of domestic violence. This offense is also referred to as domestic abuse, domestic violence or corporal injury to a spouse.”
“When someone is charged with felony domestic violence, usually this means there is a visible injury or credible eye witness,” a spokesperson from the Napa County Sheriff’s Department told E! News on the day of Artem’s arrest. “Our deputies felt comfortable arresting him on felony domestic violence charges.”
The former So You Think You Can Dance star’s bail was set at $25,000, which he posted the same day and was released.
Artem was reportedly not part of the cast for season 33 of Dancing With the Stars before his arrest, according to People. However, when his former costar Cheryl Burke learned of the incident, she told her”Sex, Lies and Spray Tans” podcast listeners that she was in “complete shock” at the news.
“Artem — it’s so shocking, I get kind of emotional — so he was arrested today. And domestic violence has been thrown in the mix,” Cheryl, 40, told her audience during the episode. I’m not going to say that he was charged with [that] but allegedly, domestic violence was the issue and he has a bail of like $25,000. My heart goes out to everyone involved. It’s just really hard for me because he is my family and I don’t know what to say here other than I hope everybody is okay. Domestic violence is serious.”
While Artem has yet to address the incident, the former Total Bellas star broke her silence the day after his arrest.
“This is a private matter, and Nikki asks for privacy for her and her family at this time,” a rep for Nikki told Journalposts on August 30.
It remains unclear if the Total Divas alum was involved in the incident in any way.