UFC Hall of Famer Arrested For 6th Time This Year

Legendary UFC fighter B.J. Penn's troubling year continued on Tuesday when he was arrested for the sixth time in 2025. Penn is facing assault charges, according to multiple reports.

Penn, 46, a native of Kailua, Hawaii, was arrested in Hilo Tuesday morning. After midnight, police responded to a call from a home in the area and encountered a man who said he was assaulted by the MMA icon.

“At 1 a.m., police responded to a report of an assault at a residence on Kanoa Street in Hilo,” police said in a statement, via MMAFighting.com. “The 45-year-old male victim reported that Penn punched and kicked him multiple times before the victim was able to leave the area and contact police. The victim later sought medical treatment for his injuries at Hilo Benioff Medical Center."

Penn was arrested "without incident" nearby just before noon. He was eventually charged with third-degree assault and was released on $1,000 bail.

Penn is due back in court on Dec. 2.

A troubling year for Penn

Overall, Penn has been arrested six times in 2025, mostly for allegations of family abuse and violating a restraining order filed by his mother, Lorraine Shin.

Shin has accused her son of “extreme psychological abuse” and claims the former UFC Lightweight and Welterweight champion is suffering from a psychiatric disorder named Capgras syndrome, which has led to Penn believing various members of his family have been replaced by "identity thieves."

“I believe my son is suffering from Capgras delusional syndrome,” Shin wrote in her restraining order. “A psychiatric disorder in which a person holds a delusion that a friend, spouse, parent, other close family member has been replaced by an identical imposter. He believes I’m an imposter who has killed his family to gain control of the family assets.”

Shin's restraining order will remain in effect until May 26, 2026.