The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office has charged a man following the weekend shooting of a teenager in the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood of Minneapolis, Minn.
Ali Abdirashid Jama, 35, has been charged with second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon in the shooting that took place just before 1 a.m. Sunday that seriously injured a 16-year-old boy.
Police were dispatched about 12:46 a.m. Sunday to the area of South 5th Street and South 19th Avenue initially on a report of a person breaking into a vehicle and the victim had begun assaulting the suspect, according to dispatch audio.
Within two minutes, the dispatcher aired a report of shots fired and a possible shooting at the same location. University of Minnesota police arrived on scene along with Minneapolis officers and had located both the suspect and the victim, according to further dispatches.
Police aired that the suspect was in custody and that a male had been shot in the lower back. Further dispatch audio from EMS responders indicated that a 16-year-old male had been shot in the abdomen and back and had been transported to the hospital.
Minneapolis – SHOOTING. Also a report of a theft and assault at the same location.
18xx S 5th St, #CedarRiverside
00:50
UMPD out with the victim and suspect.
Confirmed: Male shot in the lower back. pic.twitter.com/3bcChzewWn— CrimeWatchMpls (@CrimeWatchMpls) January 28, 2024
Charges filed on Tuesday against Jama state that police spoke to a witness who said that he was getting a ride home from Jama. The two walked out of the back of a store when Jama saw the teen throw a rock through Jama’s vehicle window and walk away. Jama and the witness got into Jama’s vehicle and followed the teen. Once they caught up to him, Jama got out of the vehicle and started fighting with the teen. The witness told police that Jama then shot the teen (referred to in the complaint as the “victim”). The witness told police that he did not see the teen with a gun.
In a post-Miranda statement to police, Jama reiterated essentially the same series of events but indicated that he and the witness were inside the vehicle when the teen smashed the right rear window with a rock. Jama said he got out of the vehicle and confronted the teen. A fight started, and Jama stepped back, pulled out a gun from his waistband and shot the teen. Jama confirmed to police that the teen had not said anything to indicate that he had a weapon. The gun was recovered by police from Jama’s waistband.
The complaint confirms that the teen was shot in the stomach and the back. Police were not able to speak to the teen at the time as he was going into surgery. The complaint states that charges could be added once the full extent of the teen’s injuries are known.
Jama made his first court appearance on Wednesday where bail was set at $50,000. Records show Jama was released from jail Wednesday evening after posting the bail amount. His next court hearing is scheduled for March 19.
Alpha News reached out to Jama’s private attorney for comment but did not receive a reply in time for this report.
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Minnesota Crime Watch & Information publishes news, info and commentary about crime, public safety and livability issues in Minneapolis, the Twin Cities and Greater Minnesota.
Crime Watch MN
Minnesota Crime Watch & Information publishes news, info and commentary about crime, public safety and livability issues in Minneapolis, the Twin Cities and Greater Minnesota.
