Nikola Jokic’s brother, Strahinja, has been arrested after punching a man in the face during a Denver Nuggets game.
He was charged with third-degree assault, a felony, and appeared in Denver County court Tuesday, according to documents obtained by the Denver Post.
The 41-year-old was captured on camera at Ball Arena allegedly attacking the man during his brother’s game against the Los Angeles Lakers in April.
According to an arrest affidavit filed by Strahinja, officers first learned of the heated altercation from a TikTok video that has since gone viral, which showed “known family members of Denver Nuggets player Nikola Jokic getting into an altercation with an unidentified fan in the stands.”
Strahinja and his brother Nemanja Jokic had a ‘verbal dialogue’ with a fan in the stands before he was knocked backwards by the force of Strahinja’s punch.
Nikola Jokic’s brother Strahinja arrested after punching a man during a Nuggets game
Shocking footage showed him striking out at an unknown man, who suffered a concussion
When the man was questioned by a Denver detective a few days later, he had cuts and bruises around and under his left eye.
He claimed the attack by a “big guy with a mohawk” was unprovoked, and was even diagnosed with a concussion.
According to the statement, he “initially did not want to press charges against Strahinja Jokic because he feared reprisals and was concerned about the safety of his family, but in early May he changed his mind.”
When approached by local police, Strahinja said he was convinced he had done nothing wrong because “he was defending an older man he had known for a long time.”
Strahinja will appear in court again on August 21 to face a summons.
It was previously reported that the The NBA conducted research intoThe shocking incident, which was widely reported on social media, showed Nikola’s wife Nataljia standing nearby with their baby daughter in her arms.
This is not the first time Strahinja has gotten into trouble with the police for violent behavior. He was arrested in 2019 for allegedly choking and pushing a woman.
The NBA star’s brother was charged with third-degree assault and appeared in court in Denver
The man initially ‘did not want to file a complaint … because he feared reprisals’
The Denver Post reported that Strahinja became violent when the woman tried to leave his apartment, saying he would choke her “until she fell asleep.” He also allegedly took her phone when she tried to call 911.
In February 2002, he pleaded guilty to interfering with telephone communications and trespassing. Other charges were dropped.
He was given a suspended sentence and told the charges would be dropped as long as he did not commit another crime before February 3, 2022.
Meanwhile, Nikola raised eyebrows when he made some very candid statements about the unusual upbringing he had with his older brother.
He told Sports Illustrated in 2017 that Strahinja ‘once held my arms and threw knives at my head’ after he refused to climb a tree with him.
“That was a little crazy,” he added.