Sergey Kovalev, the WBO’s light heavyweight champion, was removed from a flight July 15 after an allegedly inappropriate incident with a female passenger.
According to The Athletic, Kovalev was accused of grabbing and kissing the woman, as well as throwing cash at her, which resulted in the woman crying and alerting airline personnel that she felt “uncomfortable and not safe” sitting next to the boxing champion. The captain ultimately removed Kovalev from the plane. Kovalev was on a flight at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport headed to Los Angeles, where he lives with his wife and child.
The Broward County Sheriff’s Office received a disturbance call from the airport around 7:20 p.m. The incident summary report, according to The Athletic, explains that Kovalev was removed from the flight for “improper behavior,” and engaged in a “heated argument” with another male passenger, which was followed by several others.
The Broward County Sheriff’s Department spokesperson later said that there were no arrests made and no pending investigation. Kovalev was rebooked on a later flight.
In June of last year, Kovalev was arrested on felony assault charges after he claimed to “love” his accuser Jamie Frontz within minutes of meeting her and was accused of “touching her in unwanted ways.”
He allegedly continued to make sexual advances and at one point pinned Frontz to a couch at her cabin. When she escaped from his grasp, she demanded he leave. He allegedly reacted by kicking her dog and punching Frontz. After Frontz was diagnosed with a concussion and a closed displaced nasal fracture, she was granted emergency protection.
Kovalev pleaded not guilty in San Bernardino Superior Court for the charges on Aug. 27, 2018. He later posted a caption on Instagram advocating for his innocence, “I would like to ask all of you not to make hasty conclusions on the situation in which I am accused.”
The next hearing is set for Aug. 1.