Former Miami player Rashaun Jones responds to accusations surrounding death of Bryan Pata

Former Miami player Rashaun Jones has been accused and arrested for the death of teammate Bryan Pata. According to evidence obtained by ESPN, Jones made some interesting comments relating to the situation.

“In a videotaped interview from the day of Jones’ arrest, Miami-Dade Police Department Detective Juan Segovia laid out the evidence he said pointed to Jones,” wrote Paula Lavigne of ESPN. “Statements from players and associates who told authorities Jones was upset with Pata over a woman and had threatened him; a gun police said Jones owned and had used to threaten others; phone records that police said show Jones wasn’t home on the night of the shooting, as he claimed; and testimony from an eyewitness who, police say, identified Jones as the man walking quickly away from the complex parking lot after the shooting.

“Segovia also asked Jones why he changed his phone number on the day of the shooting and why he was the only player who didn’t attend a mandatory team meeting at the athletic department facilities that evening.”

According to ESPN, Jones stated that he could see how he could look in the situation — but continues to plead not guilty.

“I know how that could look because of the situation,” Jones said in the interview, via ESPN. “But I’m telling you, I had nothing to do with him dying.”

“If you were the detective, who would be the first person you would talk to?” Segovia asked.

“Probably me,” Jones said.

More on Rashaun Jones, accusations surrounding death of Bryan Pata

Moreover, Rashaun Jones stated that he and Bryan Pata once fought over a girlfriend at a teammate’s house.

“I got up from there and went downstairs. I might have cried a little bit, but it wasn’t any ongoing beef where I was at Bryan or trying to hurt Bryan,” Jones said in the interview, per ESPN.

Additionally, Jones continually referenced a home game shortly before Pata’s death, where Jones states he helped Pata — who was already in uniform — by tying his shoe for him.

“If I’m beefing with somebody and I want somebody dead, why am I tying their cleat for? I’m literally down there tying his cleat,” Jones said, via ESPN.

Moreover, multiple other pieces of evidence pointed to Jones. Still, the former Miami athlete chalked it up to being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

“I can’t explain to you. I don’t know. Just really bad luck, really bad. Look, I’m telling you. I have nothing to do with this guy being murdered, nothing. It ain’t no 15 years of telling myself I didn’t do it,” Jones said, per ESPN.

Finally, Lavigne writes that Jones said it “was unheard of” that police would sit on information from an eyewitness for 15 years, and the former Miami athlete asked why they didn’t confront him with that information sooner.

“Because cases take time to evolve, they take time to develop; we want to make sure we get things right,” Segovia said, via ESPN. “We want to make sure people are still cooperating.”