Former UFC fighter Godofredo Pepey was found dead in a Florida detention center on Sunday at 38-years-old.
Pepey is believed to have committed suicide after being held at the detention center since June following allegations that he had assaulted his wife Samara Mello.
Pepey had been facing charges of kidnapping with bodily harm and intimidation of the victim, domestic assault by strangulation, obstruction of communication with the police and domestic violence.
News of Pepey’s passing was announced by his friend and former TUF Brazil season 1 teammate Rony Mariano Bezerra.
“I’m here to bring some terrible news,” Rony ‘Jason’ wrote. “Unfortunately, we lost our partner, Godfredo Pepey. Unfortunately, he couldn’t handle the pressure and ended up taking his own life, may this serve as an example.
“Fighters can be very strong physically, but if their mind is unstable, they can end up committing an act like this. Very sad to lose this great partner, an unparalleled guy. A partner, a friend, a brother. Wherever you are, may God bless you. I love you brother.”
Pepey was 8-0 in his MMA career when he landed a spot on the first season of ‘TUF Brazil’ back in 2012, and he managed to fight his way to the final, where he lost to his friend Rony ‘Jason’.
Pepey would go on to fight in the UFC for over six years, posting a 5-6 record in the process, before being released in January of 2018 after back-to-back defeats.
Pepey would go on to fight three more times, with his last bout being in February of 2022 when he lost by submission in a welterweight title fight at Ares 3 in Paris, France.
