Marvins Antoine, an African American football player at UMass Dartmouth, was stabbed to death at 18 after a fight broke out in a Providence, Rhode Island, parking lot early Saturday morning. The freshman running back sadly passed away later at a hospital after suffering stab wounds to his chest. A fellow university student who is not a member of the football team has been arrested and charged with murder.
The stabbing happened around 12:30 a.m. on Sept. 19 in the parking lot of a Wendy’s on Charles Street, police said. Antoine was taken to Rhode Island Hospital but was pronounced dead after arriving. His teammate, 19-year-old Kensley Macean, suffered stab wounds to his head and neck and was hospitalized with injuries described as non-life-threatening. Police are continuing to investigate what happened before the deadly confrontation.
Antoine, Macean, and other members of the UMass Dartmouth football team had gone to Mezzo Lounge after playing Framingham State on Friday night. Police said the nightclub became overcrowded and eventually stopped allowing more people inside. An altercation followed and moved toward the parking lot, where the stabbing took place. Investigators are now reviewing witness accounts and other evidence to determine how the confrontation escalated.
According to People, police identified 19-year-old Chukuwnonso Uzoma-eze as the suspect. He is also a UMass Dartmouth student but is not on the university’s football team. Investigators said witness information, surveillance footage, and license plate reader data helped connect a vehicle to him. UMass Dartmouth police later took him into custody, and he faces a murder charge in Antoine’s death. Authorities have not ruled out additional charges as the investigation continues.
Antoine was from Boston and attended Durfee High School in Fall River, Massachusetts. The 5-foot-10, 180-pound running back had only recently started college and had not played in any of the Corsairs’ first three games. UMass Dartmouth lost 23-21 to Framingham State on Friday before the group traveled to Providence. Macean, a 5-foot-11 defensive back from Dighton, Massachusetts, also had not appeared in a game this season.
UMass Dartmouth Chancellor Mark A. Fuller offered condolences to Antoine’s family, friends, classmates, and teammates and wished Macean a full recovery. The university also said there was no ongoing threat to the campus. Friends have remembered Antoine as outgoing and funny, saying he often made people around him laugh and feel included. A GoFundMe campaign has also been created to help raise money for Antoine’s family and cover funeral expenses following his death. It has so far raised over $27,000. As the case moves forward, police continue to investigate the circumstances surrounding the stabbing and the events that led to Antoine’s death.
SOURCE: blacknews.com