Israel Adesanya Arrested for Possession of Brass Knuckles at JFK Airport

Former UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya was arrested and detained for possession of brass knuckles on Wednesday afternoon at JFK Airport in New York.

According to an initial report from TMZ Sports, Adesanya was arrested by the Port Authority Police Department after going through security with the weapons near the TSA screening area at approximately 1:57 p.m. local time. While brass knuckles are a class A misdemeanor in New York and can be punished with up to a year in prison plus fines, it appears that the situation was a misunderstanding. Adesanya’s manager, Tim Simpson, released a statement regarding the situation.

“Israel was handed a gift by a fan, which he put in his luggage. When flagged at the airport, Israel quickly disposed of the item, and cooperated with authorities,” Simpson said in the statement. “He has complied accordingly, with that the matter was dismissed and he is on his way home.”

Adesanya relinquished his middleweight crown in a fifth-round technical knockout defeat to Alex Pereira in the UFC 281 main event at Madison Square Garden in New York on Saturday night. It was just the second loss of his professional MMA career.