A '90 Day Fiancé' star was just sentenced to 18 years in prison after being convicted of kidnapping and assaulting his ex-fiancée

• "90 Day Fiancé" star Geoffrey Paschel was sentenced to 18 years in prison on Thursday.
• He was convicted of aggravated kidnapping and domestic assault charges last October.

"90 Day Fiancé: Before the 90 Days" star Geoffrey Paschel was sentenced to 18 years in prison on Thursday, four months after his October 2021 conviction on aggravated kidnapping and domestic assault charges. He was also charged with interference with emergency calls.

Paschel, who appeared on season four of the "90 Day" spinoff, was charged after a June 9, 2019 domestic violence incident involving Paschel and his ex-fiancée, Kristen Wilson Chapman, according to E! News. Chapman did not appear on the reality show. Paschel's charges stem from an incident that took place prior to Paschel participating in the show.

"Paschel grabbed the victim by the neck and slammed her head against the wall several times. She was also thrown to the ground and dragged. Paschel took the victim's cell phone and did not allow her to leave the residence," the Knox County, Tennessee District Attorney's office wrote in its October 2021 press release announcing Paschel's conviction.

Chapman was able to leave the house and seek safety at a neighbor's house when Paschel fell asleep, according to the press release, but sustained a concussion, a bruise on her forehead, and bruises and abrasions on her arms, back, and the inside of her lip after the altercation.

At his October 2021 trial, which lasted two days, Paschel testified that Chapman's bruising was self-inflicted, but a jury found him guilty and he was convicted of aggravated kidnapping, domestic assault, and interference with emergency calls. Paschel has consistently denied the allegations and maintained his innocence, publicly said he'd rejected a plea deal.

On Thursday, Judge Kyle Hixson ordered Paschel to serve 18 years in prison without the possibility of parole.

"With the sentence in this case, no other victims will be abused by this offender for a long time," Allen said in Thursday's press release.

The former reality star appeared on season four of TLC's "90 Day Fiance: Before the 90 Days," which aired in 2020. The show followed Paschel's relationship with and eventual engagement to Varya Malina, though fans of the show had called for him to be removed from the series in March 2020, due to past allegations and criminal charges against him, in an online petition to TLC.

(In an Instagram post responding to the petition at the time, Paschel defended his decision to appear on the show and referred to the past allegations and criminal charges against him as his "checkered past.")

Malina reacted to Paschel's sentencing in an Instagram post on Thursday.

"To be honest we didn't expect much from this sentencing. 18 years?" she captioned a reel. "Alright, we passed the bottom, that means there's only one way up! The grounds for the appeal became even stronger."

Malina's post was also a birthday tribute to Paschel's late son, Kazhem, from a previous marriage. Kazhem was about a year old when he died from a seizure in 2018, Paschel told "Before the 90 Days" producers on the season four premiere.

Previously, Malina has publicly supported Paschel, even sharing fundraising links for him on Instagram after his October 2021 sentencing alongside a caption saying she and Paschel's family were giving him "an opportunity to clear his name."

A representative for TLC didn't immediately respond to Insider's requests for comment. Malina also didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.