B. Penn was UFC lightweight and welterweight champion (Photo: Instagram/B.J. Penn)
Former two-division UFC champion and Hall of Famer, B.J. Penn, broke his silence after his fourth arrest in less than three weeks, all for violating a restraining order requested by his mother, Lorraine Shin. In a post on Instagram, the 46-year-old fighter dismissed the family's demand for a psychiatric evaluation.
“Mental health test, oh my. You don’t have to be Albert Einstein to pass one of these. Just lie well. Just don’t say you’re depressed, suicidal, or drinking or using drugs every day. And BOOM, you’re not crazy,” Penn wrote.
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Family tensions reached new heights when Shin, 79, obtained a restraining order against his son following reports of "extreme psychological abuse." The 180-day order requires the fighter to maintain a minimum distance of 30 meters from his mother and 90 meters from her place of residence or work, as well as prohibiting any physical, written or electronic contact.
Penn faces a grand jury trial on July 2 on three charges: assaulting his mother and repeatedly violating a restraining order. Without a lawyer, he was advised by the judge to hire a public defender. The $3 bail he posted in his last arrest (equivalent to R$16,6) does not prevent further arrests if he is a repeat offender.
BJ Penn's Arrests
Violations of these terms have resulted in repeated arrests. The first arrest, on May 28, was for "abuse of a family member with offensive physical contact" after Penn allegedly pushed his mother against a car and prevented her from calling the police.
The following day, the second arrest took place for failing to comply with the period of absence required after the first bail. On the 31st, the third custody was granted for failing to appear at a hearing, violating the terms of the probation.
Finally, on June 12, BJ got into trouble again with his fourth arrest when he entered his mother's residence to 'obtain banking information,' as he admitted in court.
Capgras syndrome
In court documents, Shin told the Hawaii Police Department that his son suffers from Capgras Syndrome, a rare disorder in which the sufferer believes that people close to him have been replaced by identical impostors.
Recordings released by Penn himself on social media reinforce the theory: in one video, he shouts 'FAKE LORRAINE SHIN' and 'murderous thief' while the elderly woman protests.
Other cases of fighters
Despite the scarcity of reports about Capgras in the sports world, public episodes of psychotic episodes in fighters illustrate similar risks. Former UFC champion, B.J. Penn, for example, faced severe crises with delusional and aggressive manifestations, including allegations that his mother was an 'imposter murderer', a symptom compatible with the syndrome, although never formally diagnosed.
Other athletes, such as the boxer Mike Tyson, reported hallucinations and paranoia after years of brain impacts, while Tony Ferguson, ex-UFC, has already had problems related to persecution, such as the case in which he broke a wall because he thought there was someone behind it.
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