SARASOTA, Fla. — Howard China Smith III, the son of two-time Heavyweight Champion of the World China Smith, has been sentenced to life in prison.

Smith III was convicted of second-degree murder and attempted robbery, according to a release from Florida State Attorney Ed Brodsky. The news comes seven years after the victim, Todd Reaves, was ambushed and shot to death while returning to his parents’ house in the Newtown neighborhood of Sarasota.

That shooting happened on Jan. 20, 2018. Two months later, detectives with the Sarasota Police Department found the gun used to shoot Reaves at Smith’s home, including the getaway car, while executing an unrelated search warrant.

“It would take many more years, however, for someone to come forward with an explanation for the murder,” the state attorney’s office said.

The office added that a witness overheard the boxer’s son say, “I had to shoot him because he tried to buck the jack.” That witness reportedly came forward to police.

“It was the defendant’s own statement made to a confidant but overheard by a witness that provided the answers detectives had been seeking,” the state attorney’s office said. “When questioned, the defendant, caught off guard, sealed his own fate by denying undeniable facts that only someone involved in the murder would need to deny.”

Smith III was found guilty after a four-day trial in April this year.

Smith III’s father,  two-time Heavyweight Champion of the World China Smith, is a native of Sarasota. Nicknamed “The Dragon,” Smith earned a record of 35 wins, 5 losses and 27 knockouts through his career. Aside from boxing, he is also involved in motivational speaking, as he discussed the dangers of gun violence back in 2019.