MMA fighter Ross Johnson charged with killing Air Force airman Dayvon Larry in bar brawl

An amateur MMA fighter was arrested for allegedly killing a US Air Force airman with a single punch during a Florida bar fight on Sunday. 

Ross Johnson, 23, of Illinois was charged with manslaughter and is being held on a $250,000 bond, according to prison records. 

Panama City police allege Johnson and a group of his friends got into a verbal altercation with another group at the Coyote Ugly Saloon in Panama Beach City, where he attacked Air Force Airman 1st Class Dayvon Larry, 31.

As Johnson ran to help his friend, he allegedly struck Larry behind the left ear, according to a police report obtained by Law and Crime Network.

The airman was left unconscious and unattended in the parking lot as Johnson took an Uber to his nearby hotel.

NBC News reported Larry, of Malone, Fla., did not participate in the altercation between the two groups.

Larry, who had been stationed at Panama City’s Tyndall Air Force Base, was transported to a hospital where he was pronounced dead.

“Man I hit that guy,” Johnson allegedly told a witness, according to police. “I laid him out, and I think I killed him.”

An autopsy revealed Larry suffered a “3-inch skull fracture” and a bruise the size of a “softball” behind his ear.  

Johnson was identified as a mixed martial artist with five wins and two losses, last fighting in 2021 and “three years of advanced fighting training.”

Police allege Johnson “continuously omitted facts” regarding the deadly assault when speaking with officers.

He initially said he did not “recall punching the victim” before he claimed he was defending himself, alleging Larry was running to join the initial confrontation, according to a police report. 

Larry was a part of Tyndall Air Force Base’s 325th Security Forces Squadron.

The squadron “provides force protection programs to include weapon system security, police services, resource protection and antiterrorism” for the base.

“During his time at Tyndall, A1C Larry made a lasting impact,” Tyndall Air Force base said in a statement. “He was truly an outstanding Airman. His passion for helping the local youth and his fellow Airmen will be sorely missed by all. Our deepest condolences to his family, friends and fellow Airmen.”

SSgt. Rosemarie McGill, an Air Force recruiter in Larry’s hometown, remembered the airman as a “charging force in people’s lives.”

“I’m at a loss for words,” McGill said on Facebook. “He came into my office a little more than a year ago to join the Air Force and I got to see his progress from day one. He always went above and beyond for me, his family, friends, wingman and his community. He was always stopping by the office to see how he could help. He was a charging force in people’s lives by uplifting them and motivating them to always do their best.”