Former UFC star Alex Garcia, who made 10 appearances with the promotion from 2013 to 2018, is embroiled in a massive drug bust in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
In a French-language press release issued on December 10 that initially flew under the radar, Garcia, real name Lenin Garcia Ciriaco, was one of three men arrested during a multi-building raid that nabbed the fighter and two co-conspirators for possession and distribution of drugs including heroin, cocaine and GHB (commonly known as the date-rape drug).
The value of the cocaine and heroin alone was estimated by Montreal police at approximately $2.3 million CAD.
More than $300,000 in cash, three firearms and two vehicles were also seized. Garcia, 38, is charged with drug trafficking and receiving proceeds of crime. Victor Julio Sanchez Medrano, 45, faces the same charges, while Michele Laddaga, 49, is charged with drug trafficking and possession.
Two suspects remain at large in the case, which involved raids in the boroughs of Lachine, LaSalle, Côte-des-Neiges-Notre-Dame-de-Grâce, Ville-Marie and Saint-Laurent, as well as the city of Lorraine. Arrest warrants have been issued for Rattana Sem, 40, Véronique Plouffe, 37, and his wife.
According to police, the investigation by the Anti-Gang Unit of the Organized Crime Unit of the Service de Police de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM) began in July 2025, identifying Toronto as a “supply point” of the narcotics, which were transported to Montreal and sold at higher prices.
Competing primarily at welterweight, Garcia shared the cage with the likes of Sean Strickland, Mike “Quick” Swick, Tim Means and Muslim Salikhov during his time in the UFC, posting a 5-5 record over ten fights. He left the promotion after back-to-back losses to Ryan LaFlare and Court McGee in 2018, after which he spent a brief stint with ACA where he posted an 0-2 record. His last recorded action was a loss to Abdul-Rakhman Dzhanaev in March 2020.
Originally from Santiago, Dominican Republic, Garcia trained at the famous TriStar Gym in Montreal alongside Georges St-Pierre, Olivier Aubin-Mercier, Aiemann Zahabi and others.
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