Nikki Garcia breaks her silence in first statement after husband Artem Chigvintsev’s arrest for domestic battery

Nikki Garcia has broken her silence by making her first statement after her husband Artem Chigvintsev was arrested on domestic abuse charges.

Chigvintsev, 42, was released on $25,000 bail on Thursday, August 29, after being arrested early in the morning in Yountville, California.

Due to laws protecting the identities of victims of domestic violence, officials with the Napa County Sheriff’s Office have not released the alleged victim’s name, gender or age. However, reports indicate he has been charged with corporal injury to his spouse.

In a statement on Friday, a representative for Garcia spoke about privacy following the arrest.

“This is a private matter and Nikki requests privacy for her and her family at this time,” a spokesperson said OurWeekly.

Yesterday, officers said there was enough evidence to make an arrest.

Officials with the Napa County Sheriff’s Office confirmed the arrest of the veteran Dancing With the Stars pro on Thursday, via Dailymail.com, noting that officers saw clear physical evidence of domestic violence before taking the ABC star into custody.

Chigvintsev was arrested Thursday morning in Yountville, California, in connection with a suspected domestic violence incident by department officers, Wofford told Dailymail.com on Thursday.

“When it comes to domestic violence, it’s not based on hearsay,” Napa County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Henry Wofford told Dailymail.com on Thursday. “The officers saw something that was clear.”

Wofford explained, “I’m not telling you that’s what happened in this particular case, but sometimes there were traces of blood, sometimes there were scratches, sometimes there were bruises — they were visible marks that made the officers say, ‘Okay, we’re going to make this arrest.'”

Officials with the Napa County Sheriff’s Office confirmed the arrest of 42-year-old Artem Chigvintsev, a longtime Dancing With the Stars pro, to Dailymail.com on Thursday, noting that officers saw clear physical evidence of domestic violence before taking him into custody.

Officers spoke to Chigvintsev and arrested him for domestic violence, Wofford told Dailymail.com on Thursday, adding that the dance pro was “cooperative” and “didn’t fight with our officers or anything like that.”

An alarm was triggered at the home by a 911 call made from the property around 8:30 a.m., sources close to the investigation said. TMZ on Thursday after an unknown caller reported a “medical emergency” at the property.

Sources told the newspaper that “emergency services and the fire department were on their way, and someone from the house called 911 again to cancel the request.” Both agencies then returned to their stations.

According to the Napa County Arrest Databasethe specific state penal code applies to suspects who ‘intentionally [inflict] bodily injury resulting in a traumatic condition’ against a ‘spouse or ex-spouse’; ‘cohabitant or ex-cohabitee’; ‘fiancé’; ‘someone with whom the offender has or has had an engagement or relationship’; or ‘the mother or father of the offender’s child’.

Wofford told Dailymail.com on Thursday that Chigvintsev was booked into the Napa County Jail at 10:40 a.m., and his bail was set at $25,000.

Chigvintsev posted his bail around 2:15 p.m. and was no longer in custody Thursday night, Wofford told Dailymail.com on Thursday.

Wofford told Dailymail.com on Thursday that only one other person was involved in the incident. However, he declined to identify the victim or provide details, despite their request.

Wofford said he was not aware of any protective orders filed by the victim or on their behalf by authorities as of Thursday evening.

“We’re going to take our time, as we do with every domestic violence case,” Wofford said. “No one gets preferential treatment and no one gets overlooked.

Wofford told Dailymail.com that the department was focused on providing “a support system for the victim.”

Chigvintsev celebrated his second wedding anniversary with wife Nikki Garcia, 40 – who previously wrestled in WWE under the name Nikki Bella – three days ago. Pictured in NYC in 2023

Wofford said an investigation is underway into whether Chigvintsev violated any laws in his conduct leading up to his arrest on Thursday.

“We want the victim to know that we want to hear their story, and if we need to investigate whether this is an isolated incident or an ongoing incident, we’re happy to do that,” Wofford said. “We’re going to do everything we can to protect our community.”

According to Wofford, no information is yet available on when Chigvintsev will appear in court.

Three days ago, Chigvintsev celebrated his second wedding anniversary with his 40-year-old wife Nikki Garcia, who previously wrestled in WWE under the name Nikki Bella. The couple became parents of a three-year-old son Matteo.

The two first met in 2017, when they worked together on the 25th season of Dancing With the Stars.

Chigvintsev has had relationships with other celebrities in the past. He was married to dancer Giselle Peacock, 43, from 2004 to 2005, and to DWTS judge Carrie Ann Inaba, 56, from 2006 to 2008.