Judge Denies Second Request for Bail to Cain Velasquez in Attempted Murder Case

A second request for bail for Cain Velasquez was denied during a hearing at the Santa Clara County Hall of Justice in San Jose, Calif., on Monday.

Judge Shelyna Brown, the same judge who denied bail to the former UFC champion during an arraignment on March 7, determined that Velasquez will remain behind bars. Velasquez is facing attempted murder and other charges after allegedly shooting at Harry Goularte, who is accused of molesting a relative of the Velasquez’s on multiple occasions. Goularte’s stepfather, Paul Bender, was shot in the shoulder during the incident, which occurred on Feb. 28. MMAjunkie.com was first to report the latest details in the Velasquez case.

“The reason this court says that is because this was such a reckless disregard for human life,” Brown said. “In this case, it is not just Mr. Goularte and his family. It is every single citizen who was in danger of being shot or rammed with a vehicle at the time of this seven-mile chase.

“This court is not thinking only of Mr. Goularte and his family. This court is considering every single citizen in Santa Clara County who was in proximity to this alleged incident. For these reasons, there are no least-restrictive means that will satisfy this court about the risk to the community. The court will not grant bail at this time. It will not change its prior ruling.”

Attorney Mark Geragos had been optimistic leading into the hearing that Velasquez would be granted bail on Monday. That optimism shifted to disappointment and disbelief following Brown’s ruling.

"It’s especially outrageous when you realize that the accused pedophile and his stepfather, who did nothing but protect [the alleged molester] at the day care center, are parading around like victims,” Geragos told ESPN .

During the hearing, the defense argued that traumatic brain injuries and CTE may have contributed to Velasquez acting impulsively. Some of the terms of a bail agreement proposed by the defense included $1 million posted bail, electronic monitoring, relocation to an out-of-state inpatient facility and constant supervision.

Bender, who was shot in the attack, appeared at the hearing to make a statement via video call.

“Cain Velasquez has no respect for human life,” Bender said. “He could’ve easily shot the family in the car next to us, innocent pedestrians, or even young children. Cain Velasquez does not care who sees him do this. He does not care about the rule of law and has no respect for our judicial system. If given the opportunity, I believe he will try to finish what he started. I am fearful for my life, as well as for the lives of my family. No amount of bail or GPS monitor will stop Cain Velasquez.”

Velasquez is scheduled to return to court for a plea hearing on June 10, where it will be determined if the case will go to trial or an agreement will be reached. If Velasquez is found guilty of attempted murder, he would face a minimum of 20 years in prison.

The 39-year-old Velasquez is facing charges after firing a .40 handgun “multiple times” into a truck carrying Harry Goularte, Paul Bender and Patricia Goularte. Velasquez was targeting Harry Goularte, who allegedly molested a close relative of the fighter’s as many as “100 times.” Velasquez engaged in a high-speed chase through “busy streets” of San Jose with the vehicle and fired shots, ultimately wounding Bender, who is Harry Goularte’s stepfather.

The 43-year-old Harry Goularte had been charged with one felony count of a lewd and lascivious act with a child under the age of 14 on Feb. 25. A judge released him from custody without bail under the condition that he remain on home detention in Morgan Hill, stay away from children younger than 14 and wear an electronic ankle monitor – despite the protests of the district attorney’s office. Goularte was on his way to pick up the tracking device when Velasquez attacked the vehicle.

Numerous notables from the MMA community, including Dana White, Daniel Cormier, Kamaru Usman, Kahbib Nurmagomedov and Scott Coker have submitted letters of support to the court on Velasquez’s behalf. Velasquez himself released a statement via social media in April, thanking those who supported him and urging the “true victims” in the case to “come forward.”

“I’ve reviewed all of the letters of community support for Mr. Velasquez and the letters in support of Mr. Goularte,” Brown said on Monday. “The court always appreciates community interest in a case, but the court is not ruled by community opinion at all. The court is ruled only the law. The law, in this case, is clear.”

Velasquez last fought for the Las Vegas-based promotion in February 2019, when he suffered a first-round KO loss to current divisional kingpin Francis Ngannou at UFC on ESPN 1. The Salinas, Calif., native compiled a 14-3 mark during his MMA career, earning wins over the likes of Junior dos Santos (twice), Brock Lesnar, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, Ben Rothwell, Cheick Kongo and Travis Browne. He was part of World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE)from 2019 to 2020 and has also competed for Mexican wrestling organization Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide.