Minot State football players suspected in assault on baseball team member

MINOT, N.D. – The investigation is almost complete, and charges are expected to be filed within a few days against one or possibly three Minot State University football players who are accused of assaulting a university baseball player over the weekend.
Minot police investigations commander Capt. John Klug said late Tuesday no arrests had been made, but warrants were ready to be signed by a judge in the case where senior baseball player Keith Ailes of Bozeman, Mont., suffered facial injuries and was taken to the Trinity Hospital emergency room after a fight at an off-campus apartment.
Klug said Ailes was apparently treated and released.
One of the football players in the fight – junior running back Kwame Johnson – has been removed from the team and fellow junior running back Larry Overstreet and junior defensive back Donnell Vercher have been suspended indefinitely, according to Minot State athletic director Rick Hedberg.
“I am extremely disappointed that something like this took place,” Hedberg said. “The athletic department does not condone any illegal activities in any way and we are cooperating fully with local authorities. The physical altercation occurred early Saturday morning and MSU personnel have been working closely with authorities as this investigation proceeds. Our thoughts are with (Ailes) during his recovery.”
Ailes, who plays outfield and first base for the Beavers, was transported to Trinity Hospital emergency room at 2:15 a.m.
Officers were dispatched to 816 10th Ave. NW after the fight was reported, but the three football players fled the scene before officers arrived.
“We still have some unanswered questions in the case,” said Klug about the investigation. “It’s kind of one-sided at this point. We haven’t had 100 percent cooperation from the people involved so far.” However, Klug said they would be having warrants signed off by the judge in the next few days.
The 5-foot-11, 204-pound Kwame is from Bakersfield, Calif., and attended Golden Valley High School there. The 6-foot-1, 208-pound Vercher is also from California, and attended Clovis High School and Fresno State University before coming to Minot.
Overstreet, a 5-foot-10, 224-pound running back, is from Lehigh Acres, Fla., and attended Fresno City College in California before coming to Minot.
The Beavers football team starts its season Thursday night against Southwest Minnesota State University, and Minot State sports information director Michael Linnell said “all anybody seems to want to talk about is what’s happening off the field.”
He said the team hasn’t done that well in the Division II Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference so far, but has been in the process of trying to turn things around.
The off-field distractions aren’t helping, Linnell said.