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On October 24, 2020, Indiana tourist Ethan Williams, 20, was allegedly murdered by then 24-year-old William Freeman. Even though the killing occurred two years ago, Freeman was only arrested on November 3 this year.
According to the New York Post, William Freeman was charged with second-degree murder and gun possession in connection to the murder of Ethan Williams. While he was initially held on $350000 bail, this was eventually revoked due to the serious nature of the allegations against Freeman.
As per police records, William Freeman had an extensive criminal record that included nine arrests since 2013 for being implicated in drugs, assault, and petty theft. He was arrested for gun possession in September 2018 and domestic violence in April 2019. The theft charge was related to a January 2022 incident in which Freeman was accused of shoplifting.
Details of Ethan Williams' murder
Fox reported that Ethan Williams was a student of film media at Indiana University when he and his friends went on a trip to New York.
Williams and his friends were allegedly sitting on the stoop of an Airbnb in Bushwick, Brooklyn, when the murder occurred. The NYPD believes that one of Williams' friends was mistaken for a rival gang member suspected of killing Freeman's cousin in 2018. This allegedly prompted Freeman to fire at the group of tourists, fatally striking Ethan Williams in the chest.
While Freeman supposedly emerged as a suspect in the case in 2020, several media outlets reported that Ethan Williams' father was only notified of the reported gunman being charged this year.
In an interview with the Post, Jason Williams described the moment he received a call from a prosecutor with the Brooklyn District Attorney's Office, who informed him that Ethan's alleged killer had been charged.
Jason Williams said:
“(The prosecutor) immediately led out with the news that they had arrested Ethan’s killer – William Freeman – and have a confession. It’s the first time I had heard a name, even though he had been a suspect for quite a long time."
He added:
“It is difficult to explain how I felt in the next few moments as she explained everything that had occurred in the hours before. I then called my wife and son on a three-way call to tell them the news, and we were all just kind of in a state of shock. It’s not an emotion I have felt before.”
However, he was furious when he discovered that Freeman was given a chance to be released on bail. In an official statement, he said:
“My son is dead because a criminal with nine previous arrests was free, walking the streets of New York City. I will also note that even though my son was a high-profile victim and one of the only tourists to be gunned down in many years, with national news coverage."
Criminal Court Judge Christopher Robles echoed Williams' sentiments, stating that the bail could be revoked since Freeman had previously been indicted. He said:
“Bail is always before the court when there is a change in circumstances. So, if you are asking me to reconsider bail, I’ll do it in the context of a change. In this case, you have an indictment.”
The NYPD reported that Freeman allegedly confessed to Ethan Williams' murder to police officers during their interrogation.
