- Sydney MMA event canned over fears of gangland hit
- Police believe ex-UFC star could be targeted by crims
An upcoming mixed martial arts event has been abruptly cancelled following concerns from police that a former UFC fighter and coach could be targeted for a gangland hit.
NSW Police have put a stop to the Dark Matter Fighting Championship, scheduled for April 19 at the William Inglis Hotel in Warwick Farm.
Police have received intelligence that former UFC fighter Suman Mokhtarian, a prominent figure in the local MMA scene, was the intended target of a gangland hit, 2GB’s Ben Fordham reported.
Mokhtarian, a co-founder of the Australian Top Team gym, is a licensed coach and was preparing to corner several of his fighters at the event.
The 32-year-old was allegedly the target of an alleged assassination attempt in February last year when a man was accused of disguising himself as a delivery driver and trying to shoot him in Wentworthville, in Sydney’s west.
Noa Touma, 21, was charged with attempted murder over the shooting.
Ex-UFC fighter Suman Mokhtarian (pictured) was allegedly the target of a gangland hit
NSW Police have put a stop to the Dark Matter Fighting Championship amid fears the former fighter might be targeted
Mokhtarian was the target of an alleged assassination attempt in February last year
In a letter sent to DMFC promoter Andrew Delmas earlier this month, NSW Police stated they would not support the issuance of a permit for the fight night saying there was a ‘serious risk to public safety’.
‘It’s very difficult,’ Delmas told 2GB.
‘These type of events are extremely difficult to put together, and the card is carefully selected in order to put the best particular show off that we can. It takes months of work.’
Police have also told Delmas that they are concerned about some of the fighters booked on the event, but won’t identify which fighters.
‘It’s a really difficult situation for us at the moment, but we’ll get through it,’ he said.
Delmas said he’s been in contact with police to try to find a solution so the event can go ahead.
Mokhtarian has reportedly stated that he is happy not to attend the event, but police are worried that criminals involved in the hit might not know that information and could potentially still endanger the public.
Mokhtarian, born in Sydney, had his last fight in the UFC on December 21, 2019.
More to come…
