MIAMI — The father of a 17-year-old who was stabbed to death at the Icon Brickell building in June has been arrested.
Jonathan Ferrell, 50, was arrested Tuesday and is accused of violating a domestic violence injunction involving his wife and children.
According to an arrest report from the Miami Police Department, Ferrell and his estranged wife have been together for 20 years and have four children in common.
Police said Ferrell was served the injunction on May 20 and it expired on June 10. During that time, Ferrell was not supposed to be in contact with his wife or children, police said.
According to the report, Ferrell violated the law by contacting his children during that time frame, including being with one of his children on May 23, at which time that child called the mother who heard Ferrell shouting in the background, “Christine, how could you do this?”
Other contact with the children included various texts he sent, the arrest report stated, including the following on May 23: “My Baba - I know this text will put me in jail if mom reports it but I need you to know how much I love you and (I) don’t know it matters much anymore. I didn’t realize I was doing a poor job. I regret not connecting with (you) over how you felt. I’ve decided not to participate in the custody proceedings. It’s not worth subjecting you and your brothers to the process. I just want you and your brothers to know I love you. Here’s some pictures. Please reflect on the good times when you think of our family. There were a lot. Please be safe out there in Miami. I won’t be around to enforce the guardrails :).”
Another text on June 5 sent to another child read, “Have a great last day of school. I’m proud and love you very much. Call me later and let me know how your grades finished.”
Police said Ferrell also contacted one of his sons on May 24, told him he suicidal and asked his son to meet him at the bridge near his home.
Police listed the son’s initials in the report as D.F.
According to police, Ferrell’s 17-year-old, Dominic Ferrell, was killed early in the morning on June 8 on the 34th floor of the Icon.
Police said officers responded to the Icon Residences around 2:15 a.m. that morning and found the victim with multiple stab wounds.
Dominic was pronounced dead at the scene.
According to police, the suspect, Kyrill R. Kehl, 26, followed two men into an elevator inside the building as the men used their key card to get to the 47th floor.
Police said the suspect possibly made his way to a stairwell to get down to the 34th floor.
According to police, Kehl checked various door handles before arriving to the victim’s unit, which was unlocked.
Police said he then stabbed Dominic to death as the teen was sleeping in his bedroom.
Surveillance video shows Kehl fleeing the scene after the stabbing, authorities said.
Officers said he then entered an adjacent building that was under construction before falling to his death.
According to Ferrell’s lawyer, Matt Weinshall, Ferrell contacted his family immediately after his son’s death and reached out to his children, and strongly denies any accusations of domestic violence.
In a statement released by his lawyer Tuesday, Ferrell said, “I lost my son, my best friend, and I relive it every night. I’m living a nightmare that keeps getting worse. These charges are absurd and unjust. All I want is to grieve and be a father to my children without being dragged through baseless accusations.”
A press conference is expected to be held by Ferrell’s attorney sometime this week.
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