A Newport News jury convicted a local man of setting up the murder of a football teammate in 2019 when they are were all teenagers.
The jury convicted Amareon Eley of two counts of first degree murder, two counts of conspiracy to commit murder, one count of robbery and one count of using a firearm in the August 1, 2019, killings of Erek Wright, 15, and Tyree Spady, 18.
Eley was a teammate of Wright’s on their high school football team in 2019. Eley messaged Wright via a social media site accusing Wright of stealing Eley’s gun from his locker, which Wright denied. Eley then invited Wright to meet him and commit a robbery together at the Heritage Forrest Apartments. Eley was also calling another teenager to join him.
Eley and his friend picked up Wright and Spady and they all went together to the Apartment complex. Eley continued to exchange messages with the friend saying ‘to hit both’. Wright and Spady were shot multiple times. At least one shot to Spady’s back appeared to be while he was laying on the ground and Wright was shot in the torso and face.
Police were called about gunshots and neighbors seeing the two shot on the ground within 10 minutes of that text by Eley to ‘hit both.’ Cell phone records showed Eley’s phone was in the area of the apartment complex at that time. Eley also confessed to being present and to taking a BB off of Spady’s body as he lay bleeding on the ground.
During his interview with police four weeks after the killings, detectives asked Eley if the murders had been bothering him. Both times, Eley said no.
Judge Christopher Papile will sentence him on February 20, 2026. Eley was 15 at the time of the murders, but was tried as an adult.