Overnight shooting leaves two ex-Auburn football players dead

by:Hunter Campbell06/10/12

@HunterCampbell

Late last night news broke out of Alabama of a shooting at an Auburn apartment complex that resulted in three deaths and two other injuries. Two of the deceased are former Auburn football players, and one current Tiger player was hospitalized after the incident. According to reports, the altercation started with an argument at a pool party. One witness says he and his friend were approached by two men they had never seen before who started arguing with the pair over a woman. The witness says he punched one of the men, and his friend hit both of them over the head with a bottle. That's when one or both of the men got a gun and opened fire, killing the witness' friend in the process. The Auburn police have not released any names, but reports indicate that one of the two former players killed in the shooting was Ed Christian, an offensive lineman who had given up playing football because of medical reasons early in his career. The other was Ladarious Phillips, a fullback who left the team in March for personal reasons and was planning to transfer to Jackson State, according to his mother. The injured player, Eric Mack, is a sophomore offensive lineman from South Carolina, and he remains hospitalized but is expected to recover. There will be more to learn about this story, but for now the best we can do is offer our thoughts and prayers for those affected by this awful incident and for the entire Auburn community. [ABC News] **Update: Police have confirmed three deaths resulting from the shooting, including Christian and Phillips. The third victim was Jamario Pitts, who died at the hospital after the incident. All of the victims were 20 years old. Police have identified the suspect as Desmonte Leonard, who is still at-large and considered armed and extremely dangerous.

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