Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones appeared on 105.3 The Fan in Dallas on Tuesday and addressed cornerback Kelvin Joseph’s connection to a fatal shooting that took place in the city in March.
Dallas police reached out to Joseph last Friday as he was considered a “person of interest” in connection to the shooting that led to the death of 20-year-old Cameron Ray.
With the 2022 NFL draft less than 10 days away, Jones was asked if Joseph’s connection to the homicide investigation would affect the team's draft needs.
“You’re always into taking the best player on our board, as you know. Not unlike we did with CeeDee [Lamb],” Jones told the station.
The cornerback participated in the team’s offseason workout programs on Monday. However, Jones said the franchise plans to see the ongoing investigation through to ensure that it has all necessary details.
The shooting took place in the Lower Greenville section of the Dallas. Joseph was reportedly seen on video footage the night of Ray’s death, according to The Dallas Morning News. Ray got into a confrontation with a group, according to an updated release from the Dallas police department on Saturday. After the confrontation was broken up, the suspects from the group entered a black SUV. When Ray and those with him were walking away from the scene, gunshots were fired that struck Ray from the inside the black SUV.
Ray was taken to the hospital where he later died. Barry Sorrels, Joseph’s attorney, confirmed on Saturday that Joseph shared a vehicle from which the gunshots were fired on Saturday. However, Joseph has not been publicly identified by authorities.
Sorrels told The Morning News that Joseph was unarmed at the scene and did not kill Ray.
Joseph, a second-round pick by Dallas in 2021, was initially connected with the group based on images of a person wearing a “YKDV” necklace. Joseph’s rap name is “YKDV Bossman Fat,” which he also uses on social media.
Prior to Jones’s statements on Tuesday, the Cowboys released a statement about Joseph concerning the ongoing investigation on Friday. “The organization is aware of Kelvin Joseph’s possible connection to this incident. We are in contact with Dallas law enforcement and have alerted the NFL office. We have no further comment at this time.” the team said.
Joseph played in 10 games for the Cowboys last season, recording 16 tackles.
