Arrests made in Memphis football player slaying

Story Highlights
University of Memphis athlete Taylor Bradford, 21, was shot September 30
Three charged with murder in perpetration of attempted aggravated robbery
After player was shot, he got in his car, drove off and then crashed into a tree
The killing spurred school officials to temporarily lock down the campus
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MEMPHIS, Tennessee (CNN) -- Three men have been arrested and charged with murder in the shooting death last week of a University of Memphis football player, Memphis police announced Monday.

Police investigating a car crash on September 30 found Taylor Bradford, 21, fatally wounded near the campus residence hall area.

He had apparently gotten into his car after being shot, and drove a short distance before crashing into a tree.

Bradford -- a 5-foot-11, 300-pound defensive lineman from Nashville -- was pronounced dead at Regional Medical Center.

Memphis Police Department Director Larry Godwin said DeeShawn Tate, 21, Victor Trezevant, 21, and Courtney Washington, 22, had been charged with murder in perpetration of attempted aggravated robbery.

Homicide investigators developed the case against the three men with the help of a citizen's tip and Crimestoppers, he said.

Godwin said the investigation continues, and "we do expect additional arrests in this case."

"It was an attempted robbery, aggravated robbery," he said. Bradford "was targeted because of some information that was out there and the fact that they believed he had some cash, or he had something that they wanted."

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Godwin said none of the three arrested suspects were students at the university, but he would not rule out that other suspects could be students.

Shelby County District Attorney General William L. Gibbons said the three suspects would make an initial court appearance as early as Tuesday.

He said prosecutors were considering seeking the death penalty in the case, but no decision had been made.

"Whether or not it will be would be premature for me to say," Gibbons said. "There are a lot of factors that go into it. We'll make a determination at the appropriate time."

Officials at the 21,000-student school said Bradford, a marketing major who lived on campus, was popular with the football team and on the campus as a whole.

He had transferred from Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama, and was 36 credit hours short of graduation. E-mail to a friend