Former Virginia Tech football player Isimemen Etute found not guilty in beating death of Blacksburg man

Former Virginia Tech football player Isi Etute was found not guilty on Friday in the beating death of Jerry Smith after a three-day trial in Montgomery County Circuit Court, per The Roanoke Times. Etute was facing a sentence of five to 40 years in prison if convicted of second-degree murder. The jury began deliberations at 3:00 p.m. EST this afternoon and returned with a verdict just before 6:30 p.m. EST.

Isimemen Etute admitted to beating victim

Smith and Etute allegedly met on April 10, 2021, and had oral sex. They arranged their meeting through the dating app Tinder. Etute thought he was meeting a woman named Angie. Other details revealed in the preliminary hearings suggest that Smith also paid Etute $50.

The young football player went to Smith’s apartment a second time in May with two friends. He said his intention was to find out if Smith was male or female, according to attorneys and witnesses.

A detective testified at Etute’s preliminary hearing that the football player told investigators that on May 31, 2021, he groped Smith to try to determine his gender. Using his phone’s flashlight, he tried get a better look at Smith in the dark apartment. Then Etute described punching the man when he realized he had hair on his face.

The former Virginia Tech linebacker told detectives he heard the man breathing as he left but never called 911.

According to the On3 Consensus Rankings for the 2021 cycle, the three-star linebacker was ranked as the No. 144 linebacker in America. He played both defensive end and safety for Cox High School (Virginia Beach, Virginia). His junior season was the first season that he primarily played linebacker. The Hokies’ coaching staff saw potential in him at that position, decided to offer in the summer of 2020, and it didn’t take long for him to accept.

On3’s James Fletcher also contributed to this article