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Insets, left to right: Dayvon Jones and Antwan Jones Jr. (Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office). Background: The Arizona block where the brothers allegedly killed their father earlier this week (Google Maps).
Two brothers in Arizona are accused of killing their 41-year-old father during a fight in their home, with the siblings allegedly beating and strangling the older man to death.
Dayvon Jones, 22, and Antwan Jones Jr., 23, were taken into custody and charged in connection with the death of Antwan Jones Sr., court records show. Both brothers were charged with one count each of aggravated assault, while Dayvon Jones is facing an additional count of second-degree murder.
Officers with the Goodyear Police Department at about 6:30 a.m. on Wednesday responded to a call regarding “unknown trouble” at a residence in the area of 2400 South 159th Lane, near Estrella Parkway and Lower Buckeye Parkway, according to a news release.
Upon arriving at the scene, first responders said they located an adult male — later identified as Antwan Jones Sr. — inside the home and not breathing. Police performed CPR until emergency medical personnel arrived and took over lifesaving procedures. The victim was transported to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead.
Citing the ongoing nature of the investigation, authorities initially did not disclose details about what may have led to Antwan Jones Sr.’s death, but said that “two individuals believed to be involved in the altercation were detained,” identifying those individuals as the victim’s sons.
Court documents obtained by Phoenix CBS affiliate KTVK provided additional context regarding the alleged events immediately preceding the victim’s death.
According to the report, the brothers immediately told the 911 emergency dispatcher that their father was the aggressor and they had only acted in self-defense when hitting and choking him. After their father was taken away in an ambulance, the duo allegedly called 911 again and notified police that they were on their way to the station.
In interviews with detectives, the brothers said they had gotten into an argument with the father the previous evening after Antwan Jones Jr. said he did not like his father and just “wanted to be left alone.”
The following morning, they said they were inside the bedroom they share playing video games when their father came in and continued to provoke them, allegedly “antagonizing” them and demanding that they “stand up and fight or get out of his house,” Mesa NBC affiliate KPNX reported.
Both defendants said their dad had “outbursts” and regularly threatened them with physical violence.
They said their father then punched Antwan Jones Jr. in the face, giving the 23-year-old a bloody nose. Dayvon Jones reportedly responded by putting his right arm around his father’s neck and getting him into a chokehold. The 22-year-old told authorities he kept his dad in the hold while leaning backward for about 15 seconds. During that time, his older brother admitted that he punched his dad several times.
“Antwan said he began hitting the victim because he himself got hit and he was in shock,” police reportedly wrote in a probable cause affidavit.
However, after about 15 seconds, the brothers said their dad made a “grunting noise” and went limp, which is when Dayvon Jones released the chokehold and Antwan Jones Jr. ceased hitting his father.
Dayvon Jones said that after letting go of his father, he immediately fled the house out of fear that Antwan Jones Sr. would regain consciousness and go after him. Instead of calling 911, Antwan Jones Jr. told authorities he followed his brother because he too feared that their father would “hurt or kill” Dayvon.
Both reportedly said they had been “living in fear” of their father and thought they had finally “confronted him about leaving them alone.”
The defendants’ mother and younger siblings reportedly told police that several years earlier, Antwan Jones Sr. had assaulted and strangled Antwan Jones Jr.
The defendants are currently being held in the Maricopa County Jail in lieu of $500,000 bond.