Ennis Cosby stopped his car on the side of a Los Angeles motorway to change a tyre, which prompted Mikhail Markhasev to open fire, killing him during an attempted robbery.
Ennis Cosby wasn’t officially diagnosed with dyslexia until he was a college student. In the future, he is committed to supporting other students who struggle with learning.
By the 1990s, Bill Cosby was regarded as one of America’s funniest men, untarnished by later controversies. Ennis Cosby, the renowned comedian’s only child, was fatally murdered in Los Angeles while he was changing a tyre, which was a tremendous tragedy for him.
Ennis had a flat tyre while on vacation in Los Angeles. Ennis played Theo Huxtable on The Cosby Show, where he gave his father unending fodder for jokes. Instead of robbing him as he made the change, 18-year-old Mikhail Markhasev shot him.
In the sad days that followed his passing, the Cosby family laid responsibility on two people. They asserted that although Markhasev fired the gun that killed Ennis, the lethal attack was carried out because of animosity toward Americans.
Ennis Cosby, the sole kid of the disgraced former “America’s Dad,” is the subject of this terrible tale.
When Ennis William Cosby was born on April 15, 1969, his father noticed him right away. Bill Cosby was desperate to have a son as their third child because he and his wife Camille already had two daughters.
Having a son made Bill ecstatic, and he regularly referenced his interactions with Ennis in his comedic routines. Bill based his son Ennis Cosby’s character on Theo Huxtable when he co-created The Cosby Show, which ran from 1984 to 1992.
The Los Angeles Times reports that Bill represented Theo Huxtable as a struggling student who overcame his learning handicap by incorporating Ennis’ dyslexia issues into the curriculum.
It happened just that way in Ennis Cosby’s life. Cosby started attending specialist programmes as soon as he was given the dyslexia diagnosis. He then transferred from Morehouse College in Atlanta to Teachers College at Columbia University in New York City as a result of his exceptional academic performance.
The Los Angeles Times said that Bill Cosby’s child wanted to pursue a doctorate in special education with a focus on reading difficulties.
According to The Washington Post, Ennis Cosby wrote in an essay, “I believe in chances, thus I do not give up on folks or children.”
“I think fewer pupils like myself will fall through the cracks if more teachers are aware of the indications of dyslexia and learning problems in the classroom,” the youngster continued.
Cosby not only resembles his father in looks and athleticism but also in his sense of humour. Bill Cosby recently shared an amusing story about promising Ennis his ideal Corvette in exchange for higher grades. What do you think of a Volkswagen, Dad? According to Bill, Ennis inquired.
At the age of 27, Ennis Cosby’s life was violently taken from him.
In January 1997, Ennis Cosby took a plane to visit pals in Los Angeles. He had a flat tyre, however, while operating his mother’s Mercedes SL convertible on Interstate 405 in the Bel Air neighbourhood on January 16 at around one in the morning.
According to OK!, Cosby asked Stephanie Crane, the woman he was dating, for assistance. Ennis was adamant that he could change the tyre by himself despite the woman who was parked in front of Cosby’s suggestion that he call a tow company. Then, a man came to the window while Crane was still in her car.
Mikhail Markhasev was his name. The 18-year-old Ukrainian immigrant Markhasev and his buddies were loitering in a nearby park when they noticed the vehicles driven by Ennis and Crane. Markhasev allegedly approached the automobiles while high with the intent to rob them.
He began by going to Crane’s vehicle. She sped off, worried. After that, he challenged Ennis Cosby. On the other hand, when he took too long to give Markhasev his money, he shot him in the head.
The Cosby family and the entire world were devastated by the news. An upset Bill Cosby informed the cameras, “He was my hero.” CNN faced criticism at the time for airing video showing Ennis Cosby’s body lying on the side of the road.
Authorities eventually managed to find Ennis Cosby’s killer, although it took some time and an important clue. When Christopher So, an old friend of Markhasev, heard that the National Enquirer had paid $100,000 for information on Ennis Cosby’s passing, he informed the police.
He and another man reportedly went in search of the weapon Markhasev used to kill Ennis, according to the Associated Press. According to the authorities, Markhasev bragged, “I shot a nigger.” The news is awash in coverage about it.
The 18-year-old was apprehended by police in March, and they found the gun he had thrown away, wrapped in a hat, with DNA evidence connecting him to Markhasev. He was convicted of first-degree murder in July 1998 and given a life sentence.
Although the Cosby family did not announce Markhasev’s punishment, Erika Cosby spoke with the media as they left the courtroom. She was asked if she was relieved, and according to The Washington Post, she said, “Yeah, finally.”
But in the years to come, Ennis Cosby’s passing would leave his family’s wounds raw in more ways than one.
She wrote, “I think America caused our son’s killer to hate black people.” In his home Ukraine, where there were hardly any black people, Markhasev most likely did not grow to hate black people.
Regardless of their socioeconomic or academic achievements, Camille asserts that all African-Americans in America have been and still are at risk because of their skin tones. My family and I regrettably learned that this is a racial reality in America.
The family’s suffering was made worse by Mikhail Markhasev’s refusal to take responsibility for Ennis Cosby’s murder. He denied firing the rifle up until 2001. Markhasev ultimately acknowledged his guilt and declared he would no longer be contesting his sentence in February of the same year.
According to ABC, he said, “Although my appeal is only getting started, I don’t want to go any further because it’s based on falsehood and deceit.” I’m sorry for the mistake, and I want to make it right.
Markhasev claimed that he wanted to express his regret to the victim’s family above anything else. Given the massive wickedness, I am accountable for, it is my duty and the least I can do as a Christian.
Since Ennis Cosby’s passing, Bill Cosby’s life has undergone a significant adjustment. His star has fallen significantly since several women accused him of sexual abuse in the 1990s. Until his conviction for aggravated indecent assault was overturned in 2021, Bill was found guilty in 2018.
He appeared to be considering his son Ennis Cosby the entire time, though. In an Instagram post, Bill acknowledged each of his children as the comedian got ready to go on trial in 2017. He declared, “
“I adore you, Ennis, Ensa, Erika, Erin, Camille, and Evin; keep standing up for Spirit.”