'DWTS' pro dancer Artem Chigvintsev arrested on domestic violence charge
"Dancing with the Stars" pro Artem Chigvintsev has been arrested in California on suspicion of felony domestic violence.
The 42-year-old dancer, who is married to former WWE star Nikki Garcia of "Total Bellas," was arrested around 10 a.m. Thursday and booked in Napa County jail. He is being held on $25,000 bail, according to booking records reviewed by USA TODAY.
USA TODAY has reached out to reps for Chigvintsev, the Napa County Sheriff's Office and "DWTS" for comment.
Chigvintsev and Garcia, who were partnered on "DWTS" in 2017 and married in 2022, share a 4-year-old son, Matteo Artemovich. Garcia on Wednesday posted an Instagram Story indicating she was in Napa Valley, where their family lives.
Chigvintsev, who won Season 29 of "DWTS" with Kaitlyn Bristowe in 2020 and came in fourth place with Charity Lawson last season, has been on the ABC competition show for a decade, except for a hiatus during the 2019 season.
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A source familiar with the situation but not authorized to speak publicly told USA TODAY Thursday that Chigvintsev is not part of the "Dancing with the Stars" Season 33 cast. "Pommel horse guy" Stephen Nedoroscik, an Olympic medalist who went viral earlier this summer, is the only confirmed cast member so far.
Garcia in 2020 revealed that being cut from "DWTS" for one season was detrimental to her husband's mental health.
"This past year was really tough on him, and it was also tough on our relationship, because Artem was fighting depression," she said on "The Bellas Podcast." "He was really depressed being cut, and it was really hard for him to get past it. And he then finally found a job right before COVID hit, then he lost it, and then it brought that depression back of not being a part of 'Dancing With the Stars.'"
When Chigvintsev got the call to return, however, he "immediately changed," she added.
"I felt like I had my old Artem back, the man that I fell in love with," she said. "To see him perform, his smile could not get any bigger, and you just felt his excitement and his love and his passion and, more than anything, his happiness. He was so happy to be back."
If you are a victim of domestic violence, The National Domestic Violence Hotline (thehotline.org) allows you to speak confidentially with trained advocates online or by the phone, which they recommend for those who think their online activity is being monitored by their abuser (800-799-7233). They can help survivors develop a plan to achieve safety for themselves and their children.
Contributing: Charles Trepany