Conan Silveira Arrested on Drug Trafficking Charges

*originally published July '03 on fullcontactfighter.com*

Former Extreme Fighting heavyweight champ and UFC veteran Marcus “Conan” Silveira was arrested on June 20th by special agents of the Drug Enforcement Agency in Miami, Florida. Silveira, along with his brother Marcelo and 13 other people, are accused of being part of a drug smuggling ring that was responsible for bringing in over a million Ecstasy pills into the country from Spain. The case against the MMA pioneer is the culmination of a federal investigation that began two years ago (Silveira’s alleged participation in the smuggling is supposed to have occurred then), and the 15 were indicted and charged with conspiracy to import Ecstasy, possession to distribute Ecstasy, and money laundering. If convicted, these charges could mean up to 20 years in prison, while mandatory sentencing guidelines would likely mean of minimum of three years behind bars.

A founding member of the successful American Top Team, the Brazilian jiu-jitsu instructor’s most memorable outings in the cage include losses to some of MMA’s greatest in Maurice Smith, Kazushi Sakuraba, and Dan Severn.