Ex-UFC fighter Tim Kennedy reportedly shot in deadly Congo ambush

Former UFC middleweight Tim Kennedy was shot multiple times in a September 17 ambush in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, according to reports. They emerged on Thursday, October 8. The attack reportedly killed Justin Conaglen, a former New Zealand SAS soldier on the same three-man contracting team. Kennedy, his representatives and the US and Congolese governments have not confirmed any of it.

The story surfaced on Thursday in an MMA Weekly report that named no source. Brent Tucker, a former Delta Force operator, also discussed it that day on his Tier1 Podcast, according to Stars and Stripes. War correspondent Robert Young Pelton gave further details to the New Zealand Herald, and Sherdog followed.

What has been reported

"He was in a three-man element," Tucker said on the podcast, as quoted by Stars and Stripes. "As of right now, we will call it an ambush." He told listeners that "two of them were shot up pretty badly and one lost his life in the Congo," according to the Herald.

The accounts don't agree on Kennedy's wounds. Tucker said he believed Kennedy was hit four times. MMA Weekly reported several gunshot wounds, three of them to the leg. A third, unnamed team member was also wounded, Tucker and MMA Weekly said.

Tucker told his listeners the team waited eight to 10 hours to be recovered, according to the Herald. MMA Weekly put it at close to eight. Pelton told the Herald that Kennedy was flown to the US by way of Bujumbura in Burundi and Johannesburg. MMA Weekly says he is now stable, but it named no source for that.

Pelton described the team as part of a "Tax Brigade" working for the Congolese government on mining revenue, smuggling and tax collection. The Herald notes a UN Group of Experts found Erik Prince set up Vectus Global, which signed a Congolese Finance Ministry contract for that work. It says Conaglen may have worked for Vectus, which is unconfirmed; Vectus did not respond. Who carried out the attack, and exactly where, is not known.

Justin Conaglen

Conaglen's death is the firmest part of the story. A former NZSAS lance corporal, he took unpaid leave from the New Zealand Defence Force in March. He left in August, according to the Herald. His body was returned to New Zealand and he was buried in Northland.

"The NZDF is supporting the family with some arrangements, but we have no further comment to make," the force said. Precision Lifting, an Australian company, wrote in a tribute that "for a chapter of his life, Justin chose to be part of ours."

Kennedy's career

Kennedy, 47, fought professionally from 2001 to 2016, last in Strikeforce and the UFC, and finished 18-6, with a 3-2 UFC record. He started his UFC run with a decision over Roger Gracie in July 2013 and a first-round knockout of Rafael Natal that November. His best night came in April 2014, a five-round decision over Michael Bisping.

He then lost twice by third-round TKO, to Yoel Romero in September 2014 and to Kelvin Gastelum in December 2016. The Gastelum fight was his last. Outside the cage, he enlisted in 2004 and served as a Green Beret and Special Forces sniper in Iraq and Afghanistan.

What comes next

Kennedy did not respond to Stars and Stripes' request for comment, and he hasn't said anything in public. No government or wire service has confirmed he was there. New Zealand has an investigation open into Conaglen's death, according to MMA Weekly, and Tucker said "there will be more information of this."