Former University of Connecticut men’s basketball player Eric Cobb has been arrested in Florida and charged with murdering his mother.
The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office said Tuesday that Cobb, 28, is currently in custody at Duval County Jail and charged with second-degree murder.
Officials said he was arrested after Erika Winford, 51, was found unresponsive in their backyard while wrapped in a blanket and towels early Tuesday morning. She’d been shot and was pronounced dead at the scene.
Police responded to the residence around 8:30 a.m. after receiving a 911 call from one of Winford’s friends. The friend said she went to the house to check on Winford after being unable to reach her by phone, and found blood and what appeared to be a body wrapped in blankets outside the home.
Two witnesses later reported hearing a woman screaming “he’s going to kill me” on Monday night before hearing gunshots, but neither called 911 at the time.
The 6-foot-9 Cobb, a Jacksonville native, played forward for UConn between 2017 and 2019, following one season at the University of South Carolina. A number of behavioral issues reportedly contributed to Cobb transferring from South Carolina to UConn, according to Greenwich Time.
According to his UConn bio, he has an older sister and younger brother.