Austin Man Beaten To Death During Bar Brawl On Greek Island [Updates]

AUSTIN, TX — A man from Austin was beaten to death by a group of people during a bar brawl on a Greek vacation island early Friday, according to reports.

Bakari Henderson, 22, was battered to death in the street by attackers who are believed to have used brass knuckles during the attack, according to the Daily Mail. The fight was sparked after Henderson reportedly got into an argument with a security guard inside a bar, according to the report. According to the Greek news agency Kathimerini.gr, Henderson was set upon by at least 10 people during the attack.

The Austin American-Statesman reported that Henderson attended Anderson High School through his junior year before graduating from Hyde Park Baptist High School in 2013. He was currently enrolled at the University of Arizona. The deceased man was a former intern in the office of Texas House Speaker Joe Straus, the Texas Tribune reported.

Police reports obtained by the Associated Press indicate the bar is in Lagana, an area of the island infamous for rowdy behavior among young foreign tourists, the news station noted. The Texas Tribune noted the attack occurred on the Greek island of Zakynthos.

Greek police said eight people have been arrested in connection to the attack, some appearing before a prosecutor to face murder charges. An investigation to determine who else was involved in the deadly brawl is ongoing, according to news reports.

By Friday evening, Henderson's family released a statement in which they noted he had just graduated from the Eller College of Management at the University of Arizona where he received a bachelor’s degree in business finance and entrepreneurship. Family members said the young man was in Greece on a photo shoot to launch a new fashion line.

Henderson's family released the following statement;

"As you can imagine, our family is devastated by the recent loss of our beloved son Bakari Jaward Henderson. He attended Anderson High School through his junior year and graduated from Hyde Park Baptist High School in 2013. Bakari attended The Eller College of Management at The University of Arizona on a full academic scholarship and graduated on May 12, 2017, with a BS in Business Finance and Entrepreneurship. The summer after his freshman year at University of Arizona, he interned with the Texas Speaker of the House of Representatives and the Texas State Senate. Bakari was in Greece working on a photo shoot to launch his new clothing line when the unbelievable tragedy occurred."

The day of Henderson's death, his brother posted a picture of the two of them together at the graduation of his late sibling.

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