Craig Titus

Craig Michael Titus
— Bodybuilder —
Personal info
Born (1965-01-14) January 14, 1965
Wyandotte, Michigan, U.S.
Height 5' 8"
Weight (In Season) 242 lbs.
(Off-Season) 267 lbs.
Professional career
Pro-debut

1988 NPC Houston Bodybuilding Championships -- 1st

Middleweight and Overall, 1988
Best win NPC USA Championships -- 1st Heavyweight and Overall, 1996
Predecessor Philip Hernon, Jr.
Successor Jason Arntz
Active Retired 2005
Craig Michael Titus
Born (1965-01-14) January 14, 1965
Wyandotte, Michigan, U.S.
Criminal penalty 21-55 years in state prison
Criminal status Incarcerated
Spouse(s) Kelly Ann Ryan, 2003-2009
Conviction(s) Pled guilty to second-degree murder, first-degree arson, and first-degree battery

Craig Michael Titus (born January 14, 1965,[1] in Wyandotte, Michigan) is a convicted murderer. Before this event he was an American former IFBB professional bodybuilder.

Early life

He lived most of his early life in Riverview, near Detroit. He has a younger brother, Kevin, and a younger sister, Nicole. Titus played high school football but quit because he was too small. He also wrestled at 132 lbs. After graduation Titus decided to put on some muscle by weight training.

Career

When Titus graduated from high school, he was 5'6" and 140 lbs. By the age of 21, he was 5'8" and 185 lbs. Once he started seeing good results from weight training, he decided to become a bodybuilder. Titus's first bodybuilding show was the 1988 Houston Bodybuilding Championships in which he won the Men's Open middleweight class and the overall title.

Criminal convictions

In April 1995 in Louisiana, Titus pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute Ecstasy, and was sentenced to 16 months house arrest via monitoring with an electronic anklet. In July 1997, Titus was sentenced to 21 months in prison for violating his probation by using anabolic steroids.

In December 2005, Titus and his wife Kelly Ryan were implicated in the death of Melissa James, their personal assistant, in Las Vegas, Nevada. Titus admitted to an affair with James.[2] After fleeing cross-country, the couple was arrested in Stoughton, Massachusetts. The FBI claimed intelligence that Titus and Ryan might have been trying to head to Greece; Titus is of Greek descent, and Greece has no extradition treaty with the United States.

In February 2006, after being extradited to Nevada from Boston, Titus and Ryan were denied bail. On March 29, both pleaded not guilty to a felony charge for killing their live-in assistant. The charge carried the possibility of the death penalty.

Despite previous statements asserting their innocence, both Titus and Ryan pleaded guilty to various charges on May 30, 2008, just days before their murder trial was set to begin in Las Vegas.

On August 22, 2008, Titus was convicted of second degree murder, kidnapping and arson.[3] He was sentenced to 21 to 55 years in prison. Ryan was sentenced to two consecutive terms of 3–13 years in prison.[4][5][6][7]

Anthony Gross, also charged as an accomplice in the crime, pleaded guilty in February 2009 and received probation.

With time served from the date of capture, Craig Titus is eligible for parole release on December 23, 2026.

Titus Response

On January 5, 2015 Titus responded to specific allegations in a column that he authored for Iron Magazine. He claimed that "To flee the country, one would first have to have a current passport...passports were back home in Las Vegas inside my locked safe...Never at any time did I have any inclination of traveling to Greece nor did I possess any items that would indicate that..."[8] In the same article he stated he is not Greek, he does not speak Greek and that he is of French, German and Polish descent with a little Native American mixed in.

Competitions and titles

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Bodybuilding.com - Craig Titus Pro Bodybuilding Profile". Bodybuilders.com. Retrieved October 8, 2013.
  2. ↑ Curreri, Frank. "Craig Titus Murder Charge". Criticalbench.com. Retrieved October 8, 2013.
  3. ↑ "Offender Detail Record". Nevada Offender Tracking Information System. Retrieved September 6, 2010.
  4. ↑ "Pro Bodybuilders Sentenced in Aides". News.aol.com.
  5. ↑ "Pro Bodybuilders Sentenced in Aide's 2005 Death in Vegas". Las Vegas, Nevada: 8 News NOW. August 22, 2008. Retrieved October 8, 2013.
  6. ↑ "Bodybuilder, wife get prison in slaying". Las Vegas Review-Journal. August 23, 2008. Retrieved October 8, 2013.
  7. ↑ "Bodybuilders Plead Guilty In Gruesome Slay". CBS News. May 31, 2008.
  8. ↑ Titus, Craig. "Titus Talks #51". IronMag. Iron Magazine - 5 January 2015. Retrieved 19 November 2015.

Bibliography

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Friday, May 06, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.