Prosecutors say suspended Virginia Tech linebacker Isimemen Etute beat a man to death after he discovered the victim was not a woman like he had been led to believe online.
Etute was charged with second-degree murder June 2 in the death of Blacksburg, Virginia, resident Jerry Smith. Etute, a member of Virginia Tech's 2021 recruiting class, was suspended from the team after he was charged.
At a bond hearing on Wednesday, attorneys for the state revealed that Etute allegedly told police he punched and stomped Smith, 40, multiple times after he discovered Smith was a man.