A New Jersey man, implicated in the fatal assault of his long-term friend alongside his teenage son, has been indicted on charges of aggravated manslaughter.

Eric Hannah, 55, initially faced first-degree murder charges related to the April death of 54-year-old Louis “Gus” Serbeck. The incident also involved charges against Hannah’s 17-year-old son.

As detailed previously by Law&Crime, the accusation against Hannah and his son stemmed from beating Serbeck to death after Serbeck’s daughter accused Hannah’s son of assault.

The two teenagers had been involved with each other, and the two fathers were longtime friends.

According to NJ.com, during a May hearing, Prosecutor Cathryn Wilson disclosed that the teens were “in some kind of relationship” before the incident on April 20. A press release from the prosecutor’s office stated that on April 19, Serbeck’s daughter reported her father that J.H., Hannah’s son, assaulted her at the Hannah family home.

In court, Wilson testified that Serbeck and his daughter visited the Hannah residence seeking confrontation. When they arrived, J.H. allegedly emerged as the daughter began recording, with Wilson asserting, “The juvenile defendant came out and immediately threw punches at the victim.”

Wilson said that J.H. then “retrieved some kind of bat, which is seen on the cellphone video that was taken by the defendant’s daughter. And he was attacking the victim with the bat.” The video also reportedly showed Serbeck attacking J.H. while the teenager continued his alleged attack with the bat.

At some point, Hannah enters the scene holding a large flashlight, according to what Serbeck’s daughter told police at the time. Hannah’s alleged attack on Serbeck with the flashlight was not caught on camera, but a “noticeable mark” was left on Serbeck’s head that matched the flashlight, according to police and prosecutors.

J.H. was also accused of striking Serbeck’s daughter during the April 20 altercation, prosecutors said.

According to prosecutors, Serbeck and his daughter attempted to leave, and J.H. allegedly started hitting Serbeck’s car with a hammer. It was then that Serbeck reportedly said he was having trouble breathing and subsequently collapsed. He died on the way to the hospital.

Hannah’s defense attorney, William Popjoy, told the court that his client was not involved in the fatal fight and had been trying to de-escalate the situation. He stated that Hannah never struck Serbeck, contradicting statements made by Serbeck’s daughter.

Hannah was indicted on charges of first-degree aggravated manslaughter, second-degree conspiracy to commit aggravated assault, second-degree aggravated assault, third-degree possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose and fourth-degree unlawful possession of a weapon. He remains behind bars at Cumberland County Jail and is scheduled to appear in court on Sept. 8 for his post-indictment arraignment.

J.H. is in custody at a juvenile facility and charged with homicide and weapons offenses as well as aggravated assault in connection with the alleged attack on Serbeck’s daughter. Prosecutors are still considering whether to charge him as an adult.