In the fall of 2016, Xiaopeng Yuan, a 23-year-old male student from China attending Syracuse University, was found deceased in DeWitt, New York. His body was discovered on September 30, 2016, behind the Springfield Garden Apartments. An investigation revealed he had died from gunshots. Yuan, a junior studying mathematics, was originally from Beijing.
Authorities were led to the scene after residents in the apartment complex reported hearing gunshots.
Upon arrival, they found Yuan's black Chevrolet Camaro with the engine still running in the parking lot. What initially appeared to be a drug deal gone wrong was later determined to be a robbery that turned fatal. Yuan had gone to the apartment complex under the impression that he was selling marijuana to an individual he had been in contact with.
The investigation into Yuan's death led to the arrests of two men, Cameron Isaac, 24, and his nephew, Ninimbe Mitchell, 20. Prosecutors alleged that Isaac had planned to rob Yuan of two pounds of marijuana and that Mitchell had driven him to and from the location of the crime. During the robbery, it was alleged that Isaac shot Yuan twice after Yuan chased after him.
In August 2017, a jury found Cameron Isaac guilty of first-degree murder. Ninimbe Mitchell was acquitted of a second-degree murder charge but was convicted of robbery. The following month, Isaac was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Mitchell received a sentence of 15 years in prison for his role in the robbery.
