WWE Superstar Arrested After Being ‘Uncontrollably Intimate' in Elevator
WWE star Ludwig Kaiser was arrested for battery after allegedly attacking a neighbor who complained about his passionate makeout session in an elevator.
Kaiser (real name Marcel Barthel) was booked on Wednesday, May 20, after the pro wrestler got into an altercation at his Orlando, Florida, apartment complex, according to a police report obtained by TMZ.
The alleged incident happened on April 23, when Kaiser and an unnamed woman started becoming "uncontrollably intimate" while sharing the complex's elevator with his neighbor.
When both parties reached the 12th floor and exited the elevator, the man claimed he told Kaiser and the woman to "please have some manners."
That's when Kaiser - who currently wrestles as El Grande Americano - allegedly attacked his neighbor and shoved him to the ground.
Kaiser also allegedly threatened the man, who later reported the assault to police. Authorities were able to identify Kaiser using security camera footage and arrested him for misdemeanor battery on Wednesday.
He was booked into the Orange County Jail and released after posting $1,000 bail.
Kaiser waived his appearance for arraignment proceedings and entered a written plea of not guilty on Thursday, May 21, according to pro wrestling site NoDQ.com.
Us Weekly has reached out to WWE for comment.
According to an affidavit obtained by NoDQ.com, Kaiser was ordered to have no contact with the neighbor, "not consume alcohol to the point of intoxication" and "not possess drug paraphernalia or controlled substances unless prescribed by a doctor."
Kaiser's neighbor was observed to have "a large, fresh scratch" on the back of his head, per the affidavit.
Kaiser previously dated WWE star Tiffany Stratton, though the couple are believed to have broken up last year.
Earlier this week, Stratton, 27, shut down a rumor about their relationship during a livestream when she was asked about suspicion that Kaiser's former tag team partner, Giovanni Vinci, had been released by WWE after he was caught flirting with her.
"You guys. That may be the craziest one I've ever heard," she said. "That did not happen, that is not true. There is no truth to that."
Stratton wished Vinci, 35, well after his debut in Total Nonstop Action last week.
"I hope he's doing amazing, I heard he just signed with TNA, and I think he's gonna kill it," she said. "So absolutely no truth to that. That's a [completely] false accusation."
Kaiser signed with WWE in 2017, eventually making a name for himself in the stable Imperium alongside Vinci and Gunther. He began portraying El Grande Americano in June 2025.
He is scheduled to compete against The Original El Grande Americano (aka Chad Gable) at Lucha Libre's AAA Worldwide's Noche de Los Grandes on May 30.
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This story was originally published May 21, 2026 at 9:48 AM.