Alexander Emelianenko, the brother of the legendary Fedor Emelianenko, will be released from prison early after being convicted for sexual assault in 2015.
Emelianenko has served less than two years of a four and a half year sentence. He is expected to be out of prison shortly and expects to step back into the cage by the end of the year.
Emelianenko’s lawyer, Kakhaben Dolbadze issued the following statement (translated by The Bloody Elbow) about his client’s early release:
"The court granted the petition for early release filed by my client, I hope he learned the right lessons from the difficult situation. He has revised his views on standards of conduct in society. And, with the dignity of a true champion, will rise after a knockout. Today he should be released on parole, and I wish him to throw out his incredible power only in a sports ring, praising the strength of character and the Russian sport!” said Dolbadze.
Emelianenko was sent to prison in 2015 after kidnapping a housekeeper by the name of Polina Stepanova. He would also steal her passport, make her consume illegal substances and sexually assault her. Emelianenko pleaded not guilty to all the charges against him, even claiming that the sexual favors were all consensual in nature.
In an interesting twist to the story, the owner of Eurasia Fight Nights, Kamil Gadzhiev, has shown interest in hosting the fighter's return to the cage. If Emelianenko does compete in the promotion, his fight(s) would air live on UFC Fight Pass, so a convicted felon with sexual assault charges would compete on the UFC streaming network.
