U.S. Marshals and Ohio police have arrested three men in connection with the fatal beating of 17-year-old Ethan Liming outside an Ohio school created by Lebron James' foundation earlier this month.
Officials arrested Deshawn Stafford Jr., 20, Tyler Stafford, 19, and Donovon Jones, 21 on Saturday morning at two different residences in Akron, Ohio, according to a statement released by the U.S. Marshals Service.
Liming, a rising high school senior, died June 2 following a fight in the parking lot of the I Promise School in Akron in an incident police called a “senseless act of violence.”
Officers arrived at the scene around 10:45 p.m. that night following reports of a physical fight, which had allegedly broken out between Liming and his friends, who were allegedly shooting at people with a toy water gun from a car, and another group.
At the scene, police allegedly found Liming lying on the ground unresponsive. He was pronounced dead at the scene, Akron police Chief Stephen Myeltt said at a news conference last week.
The Summit County Medical Examiner’s Office said Liming died from a blunt force head injury and the manner of death was homicide.
The arrests followed the announcement of a $30,000 reward offered for information leading to the identification, arrest and prosecution of any persons responsible for Liming’s death. Officials were not immediately available to respond to an inquiry about whether that reward money had been paid out.
"We thank the members of the community for their outpouring of support that helped investigators throughout this investigation," Mylett said in a statement about the arrests. "We will continue to follow any leads that will result in bringing those responsible for Ethan’s death to justice."