FORMER Miami Hurricanes football player Rashaun Jones was arrested on August 19, 2021.
The former defensive back had played for the University of Miami in 2004.
Who is Rashaun Jones and why was he arrested?
Rashaun Jones, 35, is a former college football player who had a promising career in the sport.
Hailing from Lake City, Florida, Jones was recruited by the University of Miami after attending Columbia High School South.
As a senior in high school, he had 60 tackles and a school-record eight interceptions, with 19 passes broken up.
He had three blocked punts, two forced fumbles, and one fumble recovery.
Jones had six offers to play college football and chose the University of Miami in 2004, earning a spot on the team.
He was a liberal arts major at the university and played in 12 games over two seasons.
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According to the Miami Herald, the former player was reportedly suspended from the team because of a third positive marijuana test.
Why was Rashaun Jones arrested?
Jones was arrested in Marion County, Florida over the death of his teammate Bryan Pata.
Defensive lineman Pata was shot dead in 2006 after he was hit in the back of the head.
He was killed in the parking lot of his apartment complex a couple of hours after football practice.
Pata was buried in the suit that he was planning to wear to the NFL draft.
According to a police report obtained by ESPN, authorities regarded Jones as a suspect in the death of Pata.
Hours after Pata’s death, Jones reportedly skipped a mandatory team meeting at the campus athletic center.
The outlet also reported that Jones changed his phone number the day of the shooting and asked another student-athlete “to borrow money to go out of town.”
Pata and Jones were known to be at odds with each other for various reasons, with the pair once getting into a fistfight.
Jones also dated Pata’s girlfriend, though it is unclear when.
According to Miami-Dade Police Detective Miguel Dominguez who spoke to NBC about the case back in 2017, authorities “believed that this person was waiting for Bryan Pata” minutes before his death.
Dominguez added: “We don’t know exactly where this person was positioned, but there are trees and shrubbery and concrete walls in close proximity.
"His girlfriend at the time was inside the apartment. She thought she heard his voice and when she went outside Bryan Pata was discovered deceased.”
Police did not say whether Jones would be booked in Columbia County before being transferred to Miami-Dade County.
On Friday, September 17, Jones pleaded not guilty. A second-degree murder with a weapon charge has also been formally filed.
Who was Bryan Pata?
Pata, 22, was an NFL prospect majoring in criminology at the University of Miami.
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He played 41 games during his college career, making 23 starts, and was placed on the watch list for the Hendricks Award, which is awarded to college football's top defensive end.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reportedly named him as one of the top 100 players in the South.
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