January 13, 2026: FORMER CO-OWNER OF MIXED MARTIAL ARTS STUDIO PLEADS GUILTY TO FELONY THEFT AND IDENTITY FRAUD

Maryland State Prosecutor Charlton T. Howard III announced today that Michael Perry, a former co-owner of Groundswell MMA LLC, in Frederick, Maryland, pleaded guilty yesterday to Felony Theft Scheme and Identity Fraud.

Mr. Perry pleaded guilty after the State presented witnesses in a trial in front of the Honorable Richard J. Sandy on January 12, 2026. During the State’s presentation of witnesses, testimony was elicited from several witnesses about how Mr. Perry promoted himself as a wealthy individual with investment experience. Witnesses also testified about the discovery of Mr. Perry’s personal spending including steak dinners, gun shop purchases, etc. The facts read into the record during the guilty plea revealed that Mr. Perry, a former owner of Groundswell MMA, LLC, a martial arts academy located in Frederick, Maryland, used Groundswell funds and his business partner’s identity for his own personal use. Mr. Perry was accused of spending approximately $66,000 on unauthorized expenses while he was an owner at Groundswell, MMA. In addition to his personal spending, Mr. Perry admitted that he used his business partner’s personal identifying information to obtain over $25,000 financing from multiple financing companies without consulting with his business partner.

Sentencing has been set for March 31, 2026.

The Office of the State Prosecutor would like to thank and acknowledge the work of Assistant State Prosecutor Stephanie Haddad, Deputy State Prosecutor Sarah David, Senior Assistant State Prosecutor Joyce McDonald, Special Agent Daniel Bralove and Special Agent Matthew Kerrigan for their work on this case.

A copy of the Charging Document can be found HERE.

CONTACT: [email protected]