Nikki Bella aka Nikki Garcia has filed a restraining order against her husband, Artem Chigvintsev. She has also finally detailed what he did through a sworn declaration to the court about the alleged abuse.
A few weeks ago, it came to light that Chigvintsev was arrested following a call to the police about alleged domestic abuse. While he was arrested and later released on bail, the details of what happened remained unknown.
However, the sworn statement submitted by Nikki Bella has finally shed some light on what allegedly happened that day. She filed a restraining order against Chigvintsev, and it has now been signed by the judge. An earlier report said that she’s getting divorced as well.
The WWE star’s statement said that Chigvintsev tackled her multiple times and pinned her to the floor in front of their child, Matteo. Apparently, since he was released from Dancing with the Stars he was often “angry” and allegedly snapped at her while yelling. She said that while they talked of him controlling his anger, he had screamed at her that same morning, over how she had toasted the English muffin for their child.
Nikki Bella apparently responded by throwing Matteo’s shoes at Artem, but given they were light, they didn’t hurt him. In response, he grabbed the child and ran upstairs, while the kid screamed for her. When she got in the room she was then allegedly pinned to the ground multiple times, and he was forceful enough for her to feel like she was suffocating for what “felt like 30 seconds.” This happened again, with him pinning her when she tried to get into the room. In return, she apparently grabbed his neck to get him off.
The statement also said that Chigvintsev was physically violent in mid-2023 where he grabbed her around the waist to keep her away from their son. She said that she wanted him to get help with therapy, but also to spend time away from her husband. The order signed by the judge prohibited Artem from contacting them or coming within 100 yards of them, except for court-ordered visitation.
Nikki Bella also asked for permission to leave the country with their son for work, but the judge denied the request.
For the moment, there will be a full hearing on October 21, which should shed further light on the matter.