Boxer Victor Ortiz will fight Sunday despite being charged with rape, official says

Former welterweight world champion Victor Ortiz has been charged with multiple felony counts of sexual assault, according to Oxnard police, yet his Sunday main-event fight in Ontario remains scheduled.

“He’s going to fight. We got him out of jail, he’s home,” said an official connected to the card at Citizens Business Bank Arena who spoke on the condition of anonymity given the gravity of the situation.

Ortiz, 31, of Tarzana, turned himself in to police on Tuesday afternoon in connection with accusations of forcible rape, Oxnard police said, and he was later released from Ventura County Jail on a $100,000 bond, according to an associate of the fighter.

Ortiz is due to appear in Ventura County Superior Court on Oct. 10, according to court records. He has been charged with forcible rape, forcible oral copulation and forcible digital penetration.

On March 19, according to police, a female adult contacted Oxnard police to report she was sexually assaulted in a city residence, launching a criminal investigation by the department’s family-protection unit that culminated in the arrest.

Ortiz (32-6-3, 25 knockouts) is to fight his former sparring partner from years ago, John Molina Jr. of La Verne, in Sunday’s FS1-televised main event.

Ortiz stood as World Boxing Council welterweight champion in 2011 after defeating Andre Berto in a slugfest, then fought a title fight against Floyd Mayweather Jr. that Mayweather won by fourth-round knockout.

After Ortiz head-butted Mayweather, the still-unbeaten and now retired Mayweather retaliated by belting Ortiz in the face with a combination of punches just after referee Joe Cortez allowed action to proceed.

Ortiz, who has also participated in “Dancing With the Stars” and “The Expendables 3,” has gone 3-3-1 since and recently told a radio host in New York that he hoped a victory over Molina would launch him back into contention for a tune-up fight Mayweather has discussed taking before a possible 2019 rematch with Manny Pacquiao.

lance.pugmire@latimes.com

Twitter: @latimespugmire

UPDATES:

Sept. 26, 8:35 a.m.: This article has been updated with Ortiz being charged with forcible rape, forcible oral copulation and forcible digital penetration.

This article was originally publish Sept. 25 at 9:25 p.m.