Police have uncovered DNA evidence linking Grand Rapids resident Marquay McCoy to the scene of hospitality business sophomore Dominique Nolff’s murder, according to court documents obtained by The State News.
Testimony from a March 20 hearing indicate police believe the shooting was a robbery gone wrong, with McCoy shooting Nolff and his roommate and fleeing the scene.
East Lansing police Det. Dan Brown testified during a court hearing on March 20 that blood samples found at the scene match McCoy’s DNA.
Marquay McCoy allegedly attempted to rob Nolff and his roommate of medical marijuana and a MacBook computer, according to Brown’s testimony.
During the felony and complaint warrant portion of the pretrial process, Brown testified that McCoy allegedly used a nine millimeter silver handgun in the shooting. He said an altercation occurred during the shooting that left blood samples on the scene which, according to testing by Michigan State Police, matches McCoy’s DNA.
McCoy previously denied any involvement in the shooting in court.
McCoy is being charged with open murder and multiple robbery charges. His preliminary exam was scheduled for March 28 but was adjourned until May 8 for McCoy’s attorney to do additional research on the case.
The blood samples in combination with McCoy’s parole violation contributed to Brown recommending no bond be issued for McCoy on March 20.
“He then violated, absconded from his parole less than 10 days after that and cut off his electronic tether,” Brown said at the time. “He is a high risk of flight and a danger to our society.”
Documents show that McCoy was arrested for the parole-related offense in January of 2013.
Nolff and his roommate, hospitality business sophomore Corbin Holwerda, were shot on Jan. 31 in their apartment on the 200 block of Cedar Street. Both were taken to Sparrow Hospital in Lansing, and Holwerda was released in the early morning of Feb. 1.
Nolff was pronounced dead at about 9:30 that morning. According to police, the autopsy report showed that Nolff was shot five or six times in an unspecified area of his body.
Several of Nolff’s friends and family members declined The State News’s request for comment on the police’s findings.
McCoy, 19, is accused of attempting to rob the two roommates. He was arrested on Feb. 18 in Grand Rapids after violating his parole and later became a person of interest to East Lansing police in Nolff’s murder.
