A gunman was trying to steal medical marijuana and a laptop from an apartment when he fatally shot a former Maple Grove High School student who was attending Michigan State University, according to charges filed in East Lansing.

Marquay S. McCoy, 19, of Grand Rapids, Mich., was charged Thursday with murder, armed robbery and a weapons violation in connection with the Jan. 31 killing of college sophomore Dominique "D.J." Nolff, and the wounding of Nolff's roommate Corbin Holwerda, 20 of Grand Haven, Mich.

The complaint did not say who owned the marijuana. The distribution of medical marijuana has been legal in Michigan since 2008.

Nolff, who was studying hospitality business at MSU, was a running back for Maple Grove in football and a guard on the basketball team. He moved to Middleville, Mich., for his senior year and graduated from Thornapple Kellogg High School in 2012.

McCoy remains held in a jail in Kent County, Mich., on parole violation charges.

On Jan. 7, he was released on parole from a prison sentence for assaulting a police officer. Barely three weeks later, Nolff was dead.

Paul Walsh • 612-673-4482