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2 charged in death of teen who stole bike
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CLEVELAND (AP) — Two northeast Ohio brothers used separate cars to fatally hit a 17-year-old boy who had robbed them of a dirt bike at gunpoint in Cleveland, police reports said.

The teen, Tracy Philpott Jr., from the Cleveland suburb of Warrensville Heights, died Saturday at a hospital. Two days earlier, he was hit on Cleveland’s east side by cars driven by Aaron Trail, 24, of Cleveland, and 28-year-old Alfonso Trail, of Twinsburg, police said. The brothers were charged with felonious assault.

Earlier on the night he was injured, Philpott and an unidentified male approached the Trail brothers as they stood in the garage of Aaron Trail’s home with another man, according to police. Philpott pointed a gun at the three men and told them to start one of the dirt bikes in the garage. Philpott and his accomplice also stole cellphones from the men, police said.

Minutes later, the brothers heard the dirt bike stall out. They got into separate cars and went looking for Philpott, police reports said. Witnesses reported that a car driven by Alfonso Trail hit Philpott as he walked along the street with the dirt bike. Police found the dirt bike in the middle of the road, heavily damaged.

According to the police report, Alfonso Trail told police that he had struck Philpott with his Chevy Malibu and that his brother then also hit him with his car, a Kia Optima. The report said both cars had damage consistent with the drivers hitting someone.

The brothers told police they saw Philpott’s accomplice nearby but that he ran away when they confronted him.

It’s unclear whether additional charges will be filed against the brothers. Calls to the Cleveland city prosecutor’s office were not returned.

Court records do not indicate whether the Trail brothers, who are free on bond, have attorneys. They could not be reached for comment.