Jockey Bryson Butterfly was arrested on July 13 in Harpers Ferry, W.Va., and taken into custody in connection with the April 23 murder of a 17-year-old high school senior in Baltimore, Md.
A press release from the U.S. Marshals Service, which arrested Butterfly at his home near Charles Town racetrack, said the 18-year-old jockey was one of three suspects charged with first-degree murder and robbery. The other two suspects – 32-year-old David D. Lofton and a 17-year-old minor – had previously been arrested in the shooting. Sources familiar with Butterfly's arrest said he has not yet been charged and will appear in court on Monday.
A Native American originally from Washington State and whose family are members of the Blackfeet Tribe in Montana, Butterfly began riding at age 16, scoring his initial win June 1, 2021, at Grants Pass in Oregon. He subsequently rode at Emerald Downs, Crooked River, Arizona Downs, Ellis Park, and Horseshoe Indianapolis before settling in the Mid-Atlantic area, riding his first Laurel Park winner in October 2021. He cracked the top 10 at 2022 Laurel meets, winning 32 of 369 races for the year, but had only won six of 158 in 2023 while riding at Laurel, Pimlico, Charles Town, and Penn National, where he most recently rode on July 12. In three years of riding, Butterfly won 58 of 771 races.
Butterfly also made occasional trips west to Arizona and Oklahoma to ride a horse for his mother, trainer Amy Nelson.
According to the U.S. Marshals office, Butterfly is currently being held at Eastern Regional Jail while awaiting his extradition to Maryland.
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