The “Dancing With the Stars” pro and husband to former WWE diva Nikki Bella was booked by the sheriff’s office in Napa County, California, on Thursday just before 10 a.m. PT.
Chigvintsev was released at 2:18 p.m. PT on Thursday. His bail was set at $25,000, according to booking records seen by The Post.
Artem Chigvintsev’s mugshot photo released following his arrest for domestic violence on Thursday, August 29. Napa County Department of Corrections
The incident that led to Chigvintsev’s arrest occurred somewhere in the town of Yountville. The dance pro was arrested at the scene and there were injuries involved, a spokesperson for the Napa County Sheriff’s Office confirmed to The Post.
The identity of the alleged victim is not confirmed at this time. Chigvintsev was charged under a California penal code that “makes it illegal to injure a spouse, cohabitant or fellow parent in an act of domestic violence.”
The couple lives in Napa and Bella posted an Instagram story on Wednesday, August 28, revealing she was in town getting a facial at one of her favorite spots downtown.
Artem Chigvintsev and Nikki Bella, aka Nikki Garcia, married in 2022. Instagram / nikkigarcia Artem Chigvintsev was arrested on a felony charge of domestic violence on Thursday, August 29. theartemc/Instagram
News also broke on Thursday that Chigvintsev will not be returning for Season 33 of “DWTS” despite having been among the show’s dance pros last season.
Since joining the US version of the global TV franchise on Season 19, Chigvintsev has only missed seasons 21 and 28.
Artem Chigvintsev and Nikki Bella attend Brie and Nikki Bella’s live edition of SiriusXM’s The Bellas Podcast on February 08, 2023 in Phoenix, Arizona. Getty Images for SiriusXM Artem Chigvintsev in a photo he posted on Instagram on October 4, 2022, an little over a month after his marriage to Nikki Bella. theartemc/Instagram
Before coming to America, the dancer was one of the pros on “Strictly Come Dancing” — the show that kicked off all the other international installments of “Dancing.” However, years-old allegations of verbal and physical abuse made by one of Chigvintsev’s former dancing partners resurfaced in July.
“[Artem] would look at my feet and just kick me or shove me,” English TV presenter and author Fern Britton said in an interview with British newspaper The Times back in 2015.
“He was like, ‘Shut your face. Go home before I kill you,'” she continued.
Artem Chigvintsev ahead of the season 32 finale of “Dancing With the Stars” in December 2023. ABC via Getty Images
“I would say, ‘Oh please just kill me, it would be easier,’” Britton continued. “Or what was his other one? ‘If you go for a cup of tea now, I will blow off like an atomic bomb.’ I thought, well I won’t correct him on that one.”
Chigvintsev pushed back on the allegations at the time, telling the Daily Express, “I believe I treated Fern with respect and genuine care and these claims about me are the opposite of everything I believe in and the person I am.”
The Post has reached out to reps for Chigvintsev and Bella.
If you or someone you know is affected by any of the issues raised in this story, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1.800.799.SAFE (7233) or text START to 88788.
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