Three men were arrested in connection to the fatal beating of Akron, Ohio teen Ethan Liming outside of LeBron James’ I Promise School.
According to news reports, a statement released by the U.S. Marshals Service indicated that U.S. Marshals and Ohio police arrested Tyler Stafford, 19, Deshawn Stafford Jr., 20, and Donovon Jones, 21, at two different residences in Akron on June 11.
Tyler and Deshawn Stafford were arrested at a residence on the 500 block of North Howard Street in Akron, and Jones was arrested at a residence on the 200 block of Crosby Street.
The three young men were each charged with murder and felonious assault and Donovon was additionally charged with disrupting public service. All three were also ordered to be held on a $1 million bond during their first court appearance on June 13.
Ethan, a high school senior at Firestone Community Learning Center, died on June 2 after being brutally beaten to death in the I Promise School’s parking lot. Police said they found him unresponsive in the parking lot following an alleged fight that previously went down in the vicinity.
The 17-year-old and his friends were reportedly in a car shooting at people with a toy water gun and made its way to the I Promise School’s basketball court, where they fired their water guns. A physical altercation between the suspects and another group of people then ensued.
Court documents said the three suspects allegedly beat Ethan unconscious and “stomped and kicked” in his head.
When paramedics arrived, it was too late, as he was pronounced dead at the scene. He reportedly suffered from blunt force trauma to his head.
“Ethan’s senseless and tragic death has touched every person in our community,” Akron Mayor Dan Horrigan said in the statement. “These arrests would not have been possible without the dedication of our Akron Police Department and their collaboration with the U.S. Marshals Northern Ohio Violent Fugitive Task Force. They have worked around the clock on this case and I thank them for their tireless efforts. My thoughts and prayers remain with the entire Liming family at this time.”
“While I believe the news of the arrests will be welcomed by Ethan’s family and loved ones, we all recognize that nothing will bring Ethan back. Violence in this country must stop. We are losing too many lives to senseless acts of violence,” Akron Police Chief Stephen Mylett added.
