Atlanta Braves Player Arrested and Charged With Allegedly Assaulting Wife

Atlanta Braves player Marcell Ozuna was arrested Saturday and charged with felony assault after allegedly assaulting his wife, according to police in Sandy Springs, Georgia. Police charged Ozuna, 30, with aggravated assault by strangulation, which is something police witnessed. He is also charged with misdemeanor battery and could face up to 20 years in prison.

Along with allegedly choking his wife, Ozuna is accused of striking his wife with a cast on his broken fingers from an injury suffered last week during a game. He was recently released from custody after being granted a $20,000 bond, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. During the bond hearing, Ozuna was ordered to have no contact with his wife and the couple use a family member or third party to “ferry their children between them.”

Officers were responding to a 911 call on Saturday, which reported an assault in progress. When police arrived at the couple’s home, they heard screaming inside with the front door open. “Officers entered the residence through the open door and witnessed the suspect grabbing the victim by the neck and throwing her against a wall,” Sgt. Salvador Ortega said to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “Officers were able to immediately take the suspect into custody without further incident. In addition to the strangulation attempts, the suspect also struck the victim with his arm, which has a cast from a previous injury.”

Ozuna’s wife, Genesis, told officers he threatened to kill her while they were arguing, according to an arrest affidavit. Genesis told investigators that Ozuna entered the bathroom while taking a shower and took both of her cell phones. He refused to give them back and then left home. Ozuna told the officers when he returned, Genesis was holding a knife. Genesis told police she feared for her life due to her husband’s “aggressive behavior and being physically abusive towards her in the past.”

According to ESPN, Major League Baseball will launch an investigation that could result in Ozuna being suspended. Additionally, the Braves could turn Ozuna’s recently-signed four-year, $65 million contracts to non-guaranteed.

“We learned of Marcell Ozuna’s arrest earlier this evening and immediately informed the Commissioner’s Office,” the Braves said in a statement. “The Braves fully support Major League Baseball’s policy on domestic violence, which stresses to the fullest that our society cannot and will not tolerate domestic violence in any form. Until the investigation is completed, we will have no further comment.”