Ross Allen Johnson, 23, has been accused of killing an Air Force airman, Dayvon Larry, 31, in a fight outside a Florida bar. According to a police affidavit, Johnson was seen on video surveillance at the Coyote Ugly bar in Panama City before the altercation broke out on Sunday night.
Reportedly, a woman had alerted Johnson, prompting him to jump over the patio fence to join the fight between an unknown man and his friend.
During the brawl, Johnson is said to have punched Larry behind the left ear and then proceeded to punch the man multiple times before pushing him to the ground and hitting him further.
Johnson had at least three years of experience in advanced fighting, citing his success as an amateur mixed martial artist with five wins and two losses. However, his statements on the incident were inconsistent, as he changed the story of how he punched (or pushed) Larry and left the bar.
The police reported that Johnson did not provide aid to the victim, instead fleeing the scene via Uber and being found at a nearby hotel.
When Johnson was read his Miranda rights, he claimed to have been in fear of the victim, alleging that the man was running towards the altercation. He explained that he tried to stop the fight by grabbing Larry in a “shoulder-neck hold” and turning him over to his friends.
However, officers noted that he did not mention messaging a woman about the occurrence, wherein he wrote, “Dude is still not moving.” One of Johnson’s friends spoke to police, recounting Johnson’s words: “Man, I hit that guy. I laid him out, and I think I killed him.”
The autopsy determined that Larry’s death was caused by blunt force trauma to the head, with a softball-sized hematoma found behind his left ear and a three-inch fracture on his skull. Tyndall Air Force Base expressed its condolences for the devastating loss.
In response to the incident, Johnson is now being charged with manslaughter for the death of Larry.