Marvins Antoine, an 18-year-old freshman running back at UMass Dartmouth, was fatally stabbed early Saturday, Sept. 19, after an altercation involving a nightclub in Providence, Rhode Island, police said. A 19-year-old UMass Dartmouth student has been charged with murder. A teammate was also stabbed and is expected to survive, according to ABC7 News, WFSB and NBC Boston.
What police say happened
Providence Police Chief Oscar Perez said the trouble began at Mezzo Lounge, where the players had gone after UMass Dartmouth’s Friday night home game against Framingham State. "There was an altercation between a female and some of the victims that were in line, and then, the altercation moved over to the parking lot of the Wendy’s," Perez said, according to WFSB. ABC7 News reported that the fight began around midnight; NBC Boston put the stabbing at about 12:30 a.m. at the Wendy’s on Charles Street.
Antoine was stabbed in the chest and died at Rhode Island Hospital. A 19-year-old teammate, also a freshman, was stabbed in the head, neck and arm and is expected to recover. Police said they have no indication the players knew the suspect, according to ABC7 News.
Who Marvins Antoine was
Antoine, 18, was a freshman running back who graduated from Durfee High School in Fall River, according to NBC Boston and WPRI. At a vigil on the UMass Dartmouth campus on Saturday evening, mourners released balloons and chanted his number, 26, WPRI reported.
The arrest and the charge
Police identified a suspect using license plate readers that tracked the car they say he left in, according to ABC7 News and WFSB. He is a UMass Dartmouth student who is not on the football team, and UMass Dartmouth Police arrested him on campus. He is charged with murder and is being held in Massachusetts pending extradition to Rhode Island, where NBC Boston reported an extradition hearing was scheduled for Monday. Additional charges are possible as the investigation continues, WFSB reported. A charge is an allegation, not a finding of guilt. IF Daily is not naming the suspect at this stage.
The school’s response
UMass Dartmouth Chancellor Mark Fuller said: "Our hearts and prayers are very much with Marvins’ family, friends, classmates, and teammates as we mourn his loss together." NBC Boston reported that the university said counseling services and a helpline are available to students.
What is not known
In the coverage IF Daily reviewed, police had not said what started the altercation in the line outside the club, and the suspect had not yet been arraigned in Rhode Island. IF Daily will update this story as more is confirmed.
