The cousin of a former football player found dead in a burned-out Hampton home two years ago was sentenced last week to 40 years in prison.
Ronald Ivan Scott Jr., 35, of Florida, pleaded guilty in June to second-degree murder and related charges in the April 5, 2022 slaying of 23-year-old Joshua Emmanuel Owusu-Koramoah.
The cousins were roommates at Owusu-Koramoah’s Coliseum-area townhouse at the time of the killing.
Owusu-Koramoah, a former standout linebacker at Bethel High School who also played at William & Mary, was the older brother of Cleveland Browns linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah.
Drew Barker, a Bethel High teammate of Joshua’s, said the two were going to meet at 9 that morning at the Cracker Barrel on West Mercury Boulevard. But when Owusu-Koramoah had not shown by 9:25 a.m., Barker grew worried.
“It was automatically heartbreaking when he wasn’t answering phone calls, because he was the most punctual, respectful, humble and reliable person I know,” Barker told the Daily Press after the slaying.
Barker drove to Owusu-Koramoah’s home off Cunningham Drive just before 10 a.m., just as police and firefighters were arriving there. They found him near his front door. He had been bludgeoned to death.
Police investigators found broken glass near Owusu-Koramoah’s body, an open wallet on his chest, and signs of a fight. Prosecutors believe the killing stemmed from a dispute over the use of his car.
After the fight, surveillance footage shows Scott buying gasoline at a nearby 7-Eleven on Executive Drive. Prosecutors say he doused the gasoline over Owusu-Koramoah’s body and spread it around the home before setting it ablaze.
Owusu-Koramoah’s dog, “J.J.,” died of smoke inhalation.
Scott was arrested in Florida three days later, driving Owusu-Koramoah’s Chevrolet Malibu and still wearing bloody clothes. He was later extradited to Hampton on charges of second-degree murder, arson, grand larceny and animal cruelty.
Attendees at the July 15 sentencing hearing included Owusu-Koramoah’s family, friends and a large contingent of students from Hampton Christian Academy, where he taught before he was killed.
Owusu-Koramoah was a man of immense kindness, several people at the hearing testified.
Hampton Deputy Commonwealth’s Attorney Dylan Arnold said the outpouring for Owusu-Koramoa also included 13 “victim impact statements” sent to the judge and a crowd so large that it necessitated a televised feed into an adjacent courtroom.
Owusu-Koramoah played football, basketball and soccer at Bethel, where he excelled academically and was enrolled in the Governor’s School for Science and Technology, according to a Daily Press story in 2015. He also sang in the choir at Liberty Baptist Church.
He played three seasons as a reserve linebacker at William & Mary, where he majored in chemistry, and began teaching at Hampton Christian in August 2021.
Owusu-Koramoah’s mother, Beverly Mabson-James, 63, said her son’s kind ways had no barriers.
“Our Creator only lent him to me and the rest of the world, (whose) life was touched by his presence,” Mabson-James wrote in a victim impact statement to Hampton Circuit Court Judge Michael Gaten.
“White people, Black people, rich and poor people, smart and unsmart people, he was touching … all walks of life,” she added.
Mabson-James testified about her son meeting an amputee at a bus stop, a woman late for her doctor’s visit. Owusu-Koramoah “took time out of his day to take this person to her medical appointment,” Arnold said.
Mabson-James wrote that she spoke with Owusu-Koramoah only a few hours before he was killed — as he waited on Scott to return to the town home with Owusu-Koramoah’s car and house keys.
Mabson-James was angry about it, she wrote, but Owusu-Koramoah was much more calm, telling her “the car was (a material thing), and we could always get another one,” she wrote in her letter to the judge.
Owusu-Koramoah’s brothers also testified at the sentencing hearing, including Jeremiah — the NFL player.
Among other things, Jeremiah talked of a time he and Joshua were traveling on a plane — but as they were leaving the aircraft, Jeremiah realized his brother was no longer walking next to him.
“Jeremiah turns around and (Joshua) is helping an elderly person down the aisle of the plane,” Arnold said.
The principal at Hampton Christian, Shirlyne Heard, termed Owusu-Koramoah a “true angel,” telling Gaten he was always positive and engaging with the students.
“His character was truly contagious,” Heard wrote. “Joshua’s ability to put people at ease and his respect for everyone he encountered were remarkable.”
Teresita Akers, the mother of a Hampton Christian student, talked about how her son immediately connected with “Mr. O” — that he “made learning fun” and “connected with each child based on their interests.”
“He was so excited to have a young teacher that he could relate to,” Akers wrote about her son. Mr. O’s death, she wrote, greatly hurt the teen.
State sentencing guidelines carried a range of 9 to 22 years. Arnold said that modest range stemmed from arson being listed as the case’s primary charge, since that has a stiffer maximum punishment under law than second-degree murder.
Arnold asked Gaten for 40 years of active prison time.
Scott’s attorney, Hampton Deputy Hampton Public Defender Hilary Merica, asked for a sentence within the state guidelines, contending Scott deserves credit for taking responsibility and pleading guilty without a plea agreement.
Merica could not be reached this week.
Gaten sentenced Scott to 40 years on the murder — and 55 years of suspended time combined in the arson, grand larceny and animal cruelty counts.
The judge told those in attendance that homicides are very heavy to deal with, given the emotions involved and the sense of loss to the families.
“But he said that this is the one case he can remember where he will go home with a sense of hope — because of who Joshua was and the impact Joshua had on the community,” Arnold said.
Most of Owusu-Koramoah immediate family was satisfied with the sentence, the prosecutor said. But the victim’s father — Andrews Owusu-Koramoah of Stafford County — told the Daily Press that his son was “vulnerable” and that his slaying deserved a far stiffer punishment.
“That’s not what we were looking for,” he said of the 40-year term. “We were praying for life without parole, because what (Scott) did was very evil … A family member was trying to support you, and you end up killing him.”
Scott is being held at the Western Tidewater Regional Jail, awaiting a transfer to a state prison.
Reporter Marty O’Brien contributed to this report.
Peter Dujardin, 757-897-2062, pdujardin@dailypress.com
