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Nickolis Williams, 33, admitted to his role in a dispute that rapidly escalated at the Odalis Restaurant on Georgia Avenue in Silver Spring that resulted in the death of 29-year-old Darcel Cole, who was hospitalized for months and later died from his injuries.
According to prosecutors, on Dec. 18, 2021, Cole and friends were at the eatery when Williams arrived and the two got into an argument, with both agreeing to head outside for a fight.
The men were caught on surveillance video walking to a nearby parking lot, where they began began a mismatched fight, officials say, because Williams "is much larger than Cole and has boxing training."
Officials say that Williams knocked Cole to the ground with a punch and was seen lying motionless on the ground while Williams stood over him and continued the assault, striking his head and face with closed fists.
Williams then walked away from Cole, leaving him motionless on the ground for several seconds before coming back to stomp on his head three times as his limp body lay on the ground.
Williams remained on scene, "appearing to manipulate or check on Cole’s body," prosecutors said, before fleeing in the direction of Georgia Avenue.
He was arrested after the fact and admitted to the attack after initially denying any involvement.
A search warrant was done on Williams’s car and officers recovered clothing matching what he was wearing, stored in a bag along with sneakers with Cole's blood on them.
When first responders got to the scene, they found Cole unresponsive and suffering from "significant head trauma."
Cole was rushed to an area hospital for treatment, where he remained in a vegetative state for more than nine months before succumbing to his injuries on Oct. 5, 2022.
The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner later determined that Cole's death was caused by complications from the head trauma and it was ruled a homicide.
When he is sentenced in May, Williams faces up to 30 years in prison under the terms of his plea.
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