Jeremy Stephens and a co-conspirator beat a victim for about one minute, causing him to lose consciousness once, to stop breathing twice and sending him to the hospital in critical condition, Des Moines police allege in new details emerging from Stephens' felony case.
The incident which Stephens is alleged to have played a role took place on Oct. 15, 2011, according to an article published by The Des Moines Register that cites police reports as its source.
Stephens and the victim were among a group of people at Fat Tony's Sports Tap when the incident began. According to the report, the victim had been asked to leave the bar and was in the parking lot with his wife when Stephens and another man, Dustin James Bachman, emerged.
The victim's wife says that at that point, Stephens punched him, and Bachman followed. She then helped her husband to the car and was attempting to lock the doors when Bachman pulled him out.
At that point, Stephens and Bachman allegedly punched and kicked him in the head and body for about a minute.
The report does not mention if the victim made a full recovery.
Des Moines police, however, did refute the accusations that they had intentionally arrested Stephens on the day of his fight to keep him from competing.
Stephens was taken into custody last Friday in Minneapolis, just hours before he was scheduled to face Yves Edwards at UFC on FX 5. While Stephens' camp has said Stephens had never been notified of any charge, police tell a different story, saying that Stephens had "several opportunities" to turn himself in, in connection with the crime after being notified of the warrant. They note that Bachman was arrested that same day.
Des Moines police added that because the warrant specified that they could only travel to surrounding states, his appearance in neighboring Minnesota was their first real opportunity to arrest him. He moved from Iowa to San Diego sometime in 2011.
Stephens was extradited from Minnesota to Iowa earlier this week, and he is currently being held at Polk County Jail, with bond set at $100,000. He faces two felony charges of willful injury and causing bodily injury or mental illness.
The 26-year-old Stephens is 20-8 in his pro career, and 7-7 in 14 UFC appearances.