Olympic gold medalist Kyle Snyder is facing some serious legal trouble.
Snyder was arrested in Ohio on Friday, May 9, as part of a prostitution ring, authorities confirmed on Monday, May 12. Columbus Police Sgt. Joe Albert told local CBS affiliate 10 WNBS the city’s Police and Community Together (PACT) Unit conducted an undercover mission on Friday. Officers began to receive text messages from a man responding to an ad around 8:15 p.m. that night.
Authorities set up a meeting with the man at a nearby hotel. According to the news channel, Snyder arrived 20 minutes later and paid an undercover officer with cash before he asked for a sexual act. He was arrested for engaging in prostitution and subsequently released from custody.
Snyder was one of 16 men charged during the operation. He is due in court on May 19.
Snyder, the youngest wrestling world champion in U.S. history, became the country’s youngest gold medalist in the sport at the 2016 Rio Olympics. “I don’t really have too big of a secret,” Snyder told AP at the time. “I listen to my coaches. I train as hard as I possibly can.
“I think, if anything, my secret is that instead of thinking about winning and thinking about gold medals and stuff like that, I try to value just my effort, value my improvement and value the love that I have for the sport. That drives me every day,” he added.
He represented the United States for a second time at the Tokyo Olympic Games, where he earned the silver medal. Snyder was also at the Paris Olympic Games in 2024, where he placed fourth.
On May 8, Snyder and fellow medalists Kyle Dake and Aaron Brooks signed with the Real American Freestyle wrestling league. The league launched in Tampa, Florida, in early May, and will hold its first event on August 30 in Cleveland, Ohio.
The league is helmed by Hulk Hogan, Eric Bishoff, and wrestling coach Israel “Izzy” Martinez. Per a press release published by Forbes, Real American Freestyle Wrestling is an unscripted, freestyle league that will involve over 40 characters. In addition to Snyder, Dake, and Brooks, the league has also signed former UFC fighter Ben Askren, former national champion Zahid Valencia, former Olympian and world champion Kennedy Blades.
“Real American wrestlers are some of the most disciplined, elite athletes in the world — but until now, they haven’t had a true professional stage to showcase their greatness,” Hogan said in the April statement. “Eric and I know how to build the kind of heat that grabs attention and we’re going to make Real American Freestyle wrestling a must-see for fans.”
