Twenty-four fight MMA veteran Jake Heun has
been sentenced seven years and nine months in prison after being
convicted on drug trafficking charges in Australia.
The news was first reported by the
Dail Mail. Heun was arrested while attempting to import 801
grams of methamphetamine after a package labeled “bath gel and
cologne” broke open while in transit from France. The package was
addressed to Heun’s apartment, which led to a police investigation
that also found conversations on the fighter’s cell phone with his
girlfriend regarding further drug trafficking.
Heun claimed that he was being paid $1,000 to receive the package,
and he ultimately plead guilty to importation of a commercial
quantity of a border-controlled drug and another charge of
trafficking cocaine. Images found on Heun’s found included a
picture of a parcel containing cocaine, which he was attempting to
send to his girlfriend through the mail. Heun was also believed to
have mailed out 35 to 40 grams of cocaine between Sept. 11 and
Sept. 17 of 2020.
Additional text messages indicated that Heun had been supplying
bartenders in Melbourne with cocaine to sell prior to the COVID-19
pandemic. Heun’s conviction came with a potential life sentence due
to his ties to a Thailand drug ring, but the judge ultimately gave
him the aforementioned sentence of nearly eight years.
According to the Dail Mail report, Heun will likely be out of jail
in a little more than three years after receiving a non-parole
period of four years and nine months. Heun has already spent 420
days in jail and will likely be deported from Australia upon his
release.
The 34-year-old Heun competed on Season 17 and Season 19 of “The
Ultimate Fighter,” but lost in the elimination round on both
occasions. The Palmer, Alaska, native has compiled a 15-9
professional mark while competing for organizations such as Rizin,
Professional Fighters League, World Series of Fighting and
ProElite. He last fought on Dec. 31, 2019, when he scored a
first-round knockout victory against Satoshi
Ishii at Rizin 20.