Just days after UFC fighter Henry Cejudo became a makeshift hero by detaining a suspected drunk driver who crashed into a neighbor's home in Phoenix, his sense of safety was disrupted when burglars targeted his home. According to FOX 10 Phoenix, the break-in occurred on Tuesday morning. Cejudo's UFC championship belt, valued as much more than mere property for its emotional significance, was taken alongside $10,000 worth of items.
Cejudo expressed a raw readiness to protect his family, stating, "If I had my gun, it wouldn't be nice, I would. Because now I know you're messing with my family, and it's one thing fighting. There's another thing when my family is in danger," he told FOX 10 Phoenix. While his family was asleep in the house, the burglars broke into his detached studio and carried off his inaugural UFC belt along with other valuables.
The incident has rallied Cejudo’s friends and colleagues around him in support. Hughie Johnston, a national boxing champion and friend of Cejudo, is offering a $10,000 reward for the belt's return, as stated in a FOX 10 Phoenix report. "You’re not going to be able to sell it. You're not going to get anything out of it. It's going to be red-hot. Every pawnshop in town isn't going to want to buy that. You're going to know that it belongs to Triple C," Johnston said. "He earned it the hard way."
Cejudo's assistant suspects the criminal act was a cost exacted for heroism. Suggesting a link to the recent incident where Cejudo apprehended a fleeing suspect, the assistant explained to 12News that the burglary might not have occurred if Cejudo hadn't intervened because that's how people figured out where Cejudo lived. All said, Cejudo's main concern remains the retrieval of his UFC belt, not for its tangible value but for the emotional narrative he hoped to share with his children and future generations.
Any person with information regarding the burglary is urged to contact Silent Witness at 480-WITNESS or the Phoenix Police Department at 1-800-343-TIPS. Cejudo and his team are clear on their proposition: the items can be returned with no questions asked, emphasizing that the recovery of the stolen goods trumps any desire for retribution.
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