LIVE: Man accused of murdering football player Du'Vonta Lampkin takes the stand

DALLAS - The man accused of murdering a former NFL and OU football player took the stand on Thursday in his own defense.

Du'Vonta Lampkin was shot and killed in a Downtown Dallas Airbnb in May 2022. 

Two men, Antwan Franklin and Erick Garcia, are accused of killing Lampkin for a backpack full of cash that prosecutors said they stole.

After being arrested for the murder and released on bond, Franklin was on the run for more than a year. 

When he took the stand on Thursday morning, he confessed to buying and selling marijuana as a side job. He said that’s how he knew Lampkin.

Franklin claimed he owned Garcia $1,200, and Garcia had threatened him. That’s why he said he told Garcia Lampkin had about $20,000 in cash.

He said he expected Garcia and a third man, John Williams, to break into the Airbnb where Lampkin was staying and steal his money while he wasn’t there.

But during cross-examination, prosecutors grilled Franklin about social media messages between him and Garcia that repeatedly mentioned a robbery, his cut of the $20,000, and the fact that they should wait for Lampkin to get there. 

Prosecutors also questioned Franklin about why the messages made it seem like he was the one calling the shots.

Franklin maintained that he didn’t want anyone to get hurt and that he was the one under duress.

Both the state and the defense have rested.

They are expected to give closing arguments after a lunch break. 

What happened on the first day of testimony?

On the first day of testimony, the state showed the jury social media messages as evidence, saying they proved Franklin worked with Garcia to rob and kill Lampkin.

Prosecutors said Franklin knew Lampkin had lots of cash on him from allegedly dealing marijuana.

"Antwan set this whole thing up. There’s going to be Instagram messages that you’re going to see between Erik Garcia and Antwan Franklin setting up this robbery," said Jacob Zachariah, the lead prosecutor. "Antwan set up this robbery so that he too could profit off of it."

The Backstory

Lampkin's murder was featured on FOX 4’s Trackdown. 

Video featured on the segment showed two men entering the Airbnb where Lampkin was staying in Downtown Dallas.

One man is seen leaving with Lampkin’s backpack that was filled with thousands of dollars in cash.

Police said Franklin knew Lampkin on some level and hung out with him before the incident.

Franklin, after being arrested and released on bond, disappeared for more than a year. He was featured on Trackdown a second time this summer.

"In June of 2023, he cut his ankle monitor off," Officer B.K. Nelson with the U.S. Marshals North Texas Fugitive Task Force told FOX 4 in July.

That same month, a woman driving an SUV with Franklin inside got away from police trying to grab him in Mesquite.

But a FOX 4 viewer who saw the segment contacted the U.S. Marshals and Franklin was arrested by Richardson police at an apartment complex.

Williams, the third suspect, was also arrested at the time and implicated in the crime by Franklin. 

But as his trial began, the judge declared a mistrial. And when the case went to trial for a second time, Williams was found not guilty.

Garcia has not yet gone to trial.

Who was Du'Vonta Lampkin?

Lampkin briefly played for the Tennessee Titans after three years of playing for the Oklahoma University.

He was in the process of moving back home to North Texas when he was killed.

On Wednesday, his best friend took the stand and talked about finding his body after going to check on him.

He testified he was so distraught that his girlfriend at the time, who was not with him at the apartment, had to call 911.

"He was dead when I walked in. He was dead. Eyes open, blood on the floor. He was dead," Devonaire Clarington said.

Franklin’s mother and aunt were in the courtroom on Wednesday. They told FOX 4 they’ll comment after the trial ends.