Busted! Sheriffs break up fi ght club
Cops catch over 200 people in Hunts Point warehouse, confi scate guns
BY ALEX MITCHELL
Well, they broke the fi rst
rule of fi ght club.
Over the weekend, deputies
in the south Bronx led a massive
raid into a Hunts Point warehouse,
which was host to an illegal
boxing ring with over 200
spectators, some of whom were
carrying handguns, the NYC
Sheriff’s Offi ce announced.
The amateur boxing ring,
known as “Rumble In the
Bronx,” was operating out of a
Coster Street building on Saturday
night at around 11:15 p.m.
until law enforcement threw a
haymaker into the illegal gathering,
offi cials reported.
“Patrons were also observed
drinking alcohol, smoking,
hookah and not wearing face
coverings while failing to social
distance,” the sheriffs put
in a release, adding that “a signifi
cant amount of marijuana”
was also seized.
Ten of the fi ght club’s organizers,
including 32-year-old
CEO Michael J. Roman, a promoter,
DJ and security guard,
were cuffed on charges related
to two recovered and loaded
fi rearms, holding illegal combat,
serving copious amounts of
alcohol with no liquor license,
warehousing the liquor, having
obstructed exits and violating
Governor Andrew Cuomo’s
emergency orders which went
into effect the night before.
“They’ve been around for
a while and after some surveillance…
they were running
fi ghts for last month,” said
Chief Joseph Fucito head of
the Offi ce of the Sheriff of the
City of New York.
The chief also said there
were even instances of “counter
surveillance” from the fi ght
club leading up to the raid.
Rumble in the Bronx’s organizers
were issued a total
of $150,000 in fi nes for “failure
to protect health and
safety” which were split into
$15,000 per person plus a desk
appearance ticket.
“This was illegal before,
COVID-19, you cant have an illegal
fi ght club,” Fucito added.
With additional reporting
by Todd Maisel Photos courtesy of NYC Sheriff’s Offi ce
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