JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A man who played three seasons of college basketball for UConn and South Carolina was arrested after the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office said he killed his mother in her Jacksonville home Monday.
JSO said in social media posts Tuesday they arrested 28-year-old Eric Cobb for the murder of his mother, 51-year-old Erika Winford, after she was found wrapped in a blanket and towels in the backyard of a home on W. 15th Street near Jacksonville’s Durkeeville neighborhood.
She had suffered a gunshot wound and was pronounced dead at the scene, the post said.
Officers detained Cobb as he attempted to leave the home, JSO said. Following an interview, detectives arrested him. He is now in custody at the Duval County Jail.
Cobb, a former college basketball player, played for The University of South Carolina from 2015 to 2016, and UConn from 2017 to 2019.
He was suspended indefinitely in January 2018 from UConn for “conduct detrimental to the team,” but later rejoined the team.
What happened?
JSO Sergeant Steve Rudlaff said Monday the agency responded to a call for a body found in the backyard of a house in the 1600 block of W. 15th Street around 8:30 a.m. Monday.
Rudlaff said JSO’s initial investigation found there were two nearby witnesses, one telling police they heard someone screaming, “he’s going to kill me,” around 8 p.m. Sunday. Another witness told police they heard “multiple” gunshots. Neither witness called 911, according to Rudlaff.
Rudlaff said a friend of a person who lives at the house where Winford was found told police she was unable to reach her friend by phone, so she went to the house. She found a large pool of blood and a body in the backyard.
Family members were on the scene Monday, hugging and leaning on each other. Neighbors said they will support them.
“One of the girls down the street there told me it was her mom and her mom had been murdered and so did some of the other neighbors, confirm that to me,” said one neighbor who didn’t want to be named. “I’m sorry that that happened to them, of course, having a loved on to die.”
He said he felt for the family.
“We’ll give them any support we can if it’s food or whatever else they need,” he said.