- A Reading BJJ gym owner jailed for rape has been sentenced to eight years for attacking a woman during a free one-to-one trial class at his own academy.
- Juan Miguel Figueroa-Ball, 44, of Long Acre Close, Canterbury, was convicted of one count of rape on 25 August and sentenced on 8 October at Reading Crown Court.
- The attack happened on 21 July 2023 at Ceres Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu on Richfield Avenue in Reading, after he offered the woman a free one-to-one introductory session and got her alone on the mats.
- He was also given a 10-year restraining order and placed on the Sex Offenders Register indefinitely, and was acquitted of a separate count of sexual assault from the same incident.
- The charge matters: this was rape, not the vaguer “sexual assault” some coverage leans on — and it shows how the free-trial funnel can leave a new student alone with a coach.
A BJJ Gym Owner Jailed For Rape — What The Reading Jury Found
Juan Miguel Figueroa-Ball, 44, of Long Acre Close in Canterbury, was sentenced to eight years in prison at Reading Crown Court on 8 October after a jury convicted him of rape. The martial arts club owner ran Ceres Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, an academy on Richfield Avenue in Reading, and it was there that the offence took place on 21 July 2023. A six-day trial ended on 25 August with a guilty verdict on a single count of rape.
The wording of the conviction is not a small detail. Figueroa-Ball was convicted of rape — not the looser “sexual assault” that some reporting reaches for — and was acquitted of one count of sexual assault relating to the same incident. That distinction is the difference between naming the offence precisely and blurring it, and it matters here more than in most crime copy.
Investigating officer Temporary Detective Sergeant Jennifer Cox, of Thames Valley Police’s Harm Reduction Unit, framed the case as a traumatic offence with a lasting impact.
This was a traumatic offence which has had a lasting impact on the victim. Throughout a lengthy investigation and trial process spanning more than three years, she showed remarkable courage and resilience.
– Temporary Detective Sergeant Jennifer Cox, Thames Valley Police –
The Free-Trial Funnel That Turned Into An Attack
Figueroa-Ball had offered the woman a free one-to-one introductory session at his studio. The BJJ free trial class is the most ordinary recruitment tool in the sport: a coach waives the fee, a newcomer walks in, and the basics get taught one position at a time. Once he had her alone, police said, he attacked her during a Jiu-Jitsu roll and raped her.
That a private session can be turned into an opportunity for abuse is not a new observation in the Jiu-Jitsu community, but this case makes the mechanics stark.
A one-to-one trial means no other students on the mats, no second coach watching the room, and a brand-new student who does not yet know which adjustments are normal and which are not. The gap between a beginner’s trust and a coach’s control is exactly the vulnerability this case exposes.
The red flags worth naming are structural rather than speculative. A free trial offered as a private one-to-one instead of a slot in a normal class, a session scheduled when the academy is otherwise empty, a coach who shrugs off the idea of anyone else being present.
None of those things proves ill intent on its own — plenty of legitimate gyms run solo intro sessions. But they are conditions a prospective student should be able to name and question before walking through the door.
Eight Years, A Restraining Order, And A Lifetime On The Register
The sentence at Reading Crown Court was eight years’ imprisonment. On top of the prison term, Figueroa-Ball was made subject to a restraining order for 10 years and will remain on the Sex Offenders Register indefinitely.
The woman, who has not been named, read her Victim Personal Statement in open court herself — a decision Cox described as showing “immense bravery and dignity.” Her account, and her willingness to see the case through a process that spanned more than three years, was central to the outcome.
Violence against women and girls remains a priority for Thames Valley Police. We are committed to thoroughly investigating offences of this nature, supporting victims, and bringing offenders before the courts.
– Temporary Detective Sergeant Jennifer Cox, Thames Valley Police –
What Gym Owners And Students Should Ask Before The First Session
For gym owners, the takeaway is about process rather than suspicion. A private one-to-one trial with a brand-new student is a normal thing to offer, but the way it is structured either protects people or leaves them exposed.
Keeping a second instructor or another student visible on the mats, running intro sessions during normal staffed hours, and telling a prospective student up front who will be in the building are cheap, ordinary safeguards. BJJ coach vetting runs both ways: owners vet who is on their mats, and students vet the academy before they commit.
For prospective students — and for women’s safety in a sport that has spent years talking about power on the mats — the questions are practical. Is this a normal group class or a private one-to-one? Will anyone else be present?
Can I bring a friend, or train during a busier slot? A gym that answers those questions comfortably and without pushback is doing its job. A coach who insists the first session has to be just the two of you, in an empty room, is raising a flag worth taking seriously.
The Wider Pattern This Case Joins
This is not an isolated headline. The Jiu-Jitsu community has spent the last few years confronting the same underlying problem from several angles: the grooming of a teenage purple belt by her coach, a married instructor pursuing a 17-year-old student, and the wider debate about power and dating inside gyms. What links them is not technique but structure: a coach with authority, a student with trust, and too few people in the room to see what is happening.
A BJJ gym owner jailed for rape is, on its face, a crime story. For the people who train in and run these rooms, it is also a reminder that the free trial — the most welcoming thing a gym can offer — is only as safe as the structure around it. The safeguards are not complicated. They are just rarely asked about until a case like this makes the question unavoidable.
