Grand Rapids police say a 25-year-old man badly injured in an assault Friday morning has died.
Julius Melvin Vinson III was pronounced dead on Monday, police said in a release. They are awaiting autopsy results to determine his cause of death.
Shortly before 5 p.m. Monday, Vinson’s sister confirmed publicly in a Facebook post that he was expected to die.
The Grand Rapids Police Department says Vinson was injured in a fight on Vineland Avenue south of 28th Street sometime between 3:30 and 4 a.m. Friday. But following the victim’s injuries, no one called 911.
Police did not begin their investigation until some 12 hours later when they were called by staff at Spectrum Health Butterworth Hospital, where someone had brought the victim for treatment.
Sgt. Terry Dixon, the public information officer for the Grand Rapids Police Department, said the delay hampered the investigation and asked for the public’s help on Monday.
“If anyone has seen anything to please give us a call, whether that’s through Silent Observer or calling the Grand Rapids Police Department directly,” Dixon said. “We need some assistance on this one.”
GRPD’s Major Case Team is investigating the incident. Anyone with information is asked to call the department at 616.456.3400 or Silent Observer at 616.774.2345.