Arrest made after homeless man offered $6 to do backflip dies
A 28-year-old man was arrested Tuesday after police said he offered a homeless man money to do a backflip and livestreamed the stunt, which resulted in a spinal injury and eventual death.
The homeless man, Larry Coner, 55, approached Keonte Jones on June 20 on the 700 block of West Owens Avenue asking for money. Jones offered him $6 to do a backflip, according to a statement Wednesday from the Metropolitan Police Department.
Jones streamed the encounter on Facebook Live for nearly 10 minutes. Coner can be seen in the video landing on his neck and not getting up while Jones and a group of other people laugh and Jones tells them not to call for help.
Coner was taken to University Medical Center and died June 30 from his injuries, police said.
Jones is charged with willful disregard of a person’s safety. He has posted bail and is expected to appear in court again Sept. 14.
Contact Sabrina Schnur at sschnur@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0278. Follow @sabrina_schnur on Twitter.