Predatory offender Christopher Donquie Williams, 32, of Richfield was charged Thursday in a new rape case authorities say occurred at an apartment in Bloomington last week near Penn Avenue South and West Old Shakopee Road.
Charges filed in Hennepin County District Court say Williams became violent when his girlfriend wanted to break up with him. Police were called to the address after a father reported that he received a text from his daughter saying she was in danger and that a male on site was going to kill her.
The victim later told police that Williams held her captive in her own home for two days, strangled her, smothered her, hit her in the face and raped her in multiple ways.
Williams has been charged in the case with felony counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct, domestic assault by strangulation, and failure to comply with predatory offender registration requirements.
Williams was previously convicted in Clay County, Minn., in 2012 on nine counts related to breaking in and raping his ex-girlfriend and was sentenced to 12 years in prison. As a result, he is required to register as a predatory offender.
Williams was also just convicted in February on a felony count of failure to comply with predatory offender registration requirements. However, his 39-month prison sentence was stayed by Judge Kerry Meyer in a downward departure from sentencing guidelines. The plea deal calling for a sentence of “time served” in exchange for a guilty plea was offered by Assistant Hennepin County Attorney Elizabeth Murphy, according to court records.
Williams remains in custody on $600,000 bail on the new charges.
Jackson Gregory Robertson, 18, who court documents say has no permanent address, was charged Thursday in the April 3 shooting death of Antone Rico Anderson, 34, in downtown Minneapolis.
Charges say Robertson and Anderson got into an argument inside a residence on the 1500 block of Park Avenue, according to a witness. Robertson then threatened to shoot Anderson and told Anderson to meet him outside. Anderson went outside with a knife. A witness later told police they heard a ‘pop.’
Video images captured Robertson fleeing from the scene and boarding a bus. Video/audio on the bus captured Robertson talking on the phone about the shooting.
Following his arrest this week, Robertson admitted to the shooting but claimed it was self-defense. The gun was not recovered.
Robertson has been charged with second-degree murder without intent while committing a felony and a gross misdemeanor count of carrying a pistol without a permit.
Robertson made his first court appearance on Friday, and bail was set at $750,000.
Two people were shot in Minneapolis Friday morning at the Lake Street/35W transit tower. The shootings occurred about 10:15 a.m., according to dispatch audio. Fire fighters found one victim near the tower; a second victim was found by police a short distance away near the former Kmart site. Police aired that they found discharged casings from a rifle and a handgun, and that surveillance images showed one of the suspects firing a rifle. Police also aired that they found a bag nearby that contained a gun.
Further audio indicated that one male victim in his 20s suffered a gunshot through the torso. The other male also in his 20s was reportedly shot multiple times including in the chest. A spokesperson for Metro Transit later told media that both victims were hospitalized in stable condition. No suspects were apprehended at the time.
Minneapolis police were dispatched Friday just before 6 p.m. to a report of a person with a gun that was updated to possible shots fired and a struggle between a white male and a black male over a gun, according to dispatch audio.
Police arrived in the area of the 4000 block of 17th Avenue South and after checking around, they were directed to a garage where the suspect was reported to still be armed.
Police subsequently aired that they had a person at gunpoint who had two guns. An officer further aired that the suspect had dropped the guns and had been taken into custody after a taser was deployed.
Eric Matthew Jagers, 54, was charged on Monday with felony counts of second-degree assault, and threats of violence.
Charges say a man, referred to in the complaint as the “victim,” was driving down the alley to pick up his son and tried to avoid some debris in the road including a piece of wood board.
The victim told police that Jagers threw a boot at his vehicle. The victim got out of his vehicle to talk to Jagers when Jagers told the victim to pick up the board. The victim refused, and Jagers went to his garage and retrieved a long gun and returned to the victim and told him to pick up the board.
The victim complied and then tried to hide behind a garbage can. Jagers found the victim and grabbed him by the collar, and Jagers again told the victim to pick up the board. The victim told police that Jagers then said, “f-ck that” and then told the victim to “get on all fours.”
The victim then tried to grab the gun from Jagers and a further struggle ensued. The victim said the gun was near his head when Jagers pulled the trigger, and the gun went off. The gun fell to the ground underneath a vehicle. The victim then got on top of Jagers to hold him down. A witness arrived and got the victim off Jagers and the two retreated for their safety, the complaint said.
The victim and the witness both told police that Jagers called the victim the “N” word during the altercation and said, “say goodbye to your 5-year-old.”
The witness told police he knew Jagers as a neighbor and that Jagers seemed unstable at times, varying between friendly and not wanting anything to do with the neighbor.
The victim told police that Jagers said, “I’m a fire fighter and I know the police; I won’t get in trouble.”
Police also learned earlier in the day that Jagers went to a fire station, located at 1101 North 6th Street, in Minneapolis and fired a shot outside of the station. Two witnesses observed Jagers fire the shot in the air at the fire station.
In a later interview with police, Jagers stated that he recently retired from the Minneapolis Fire Department after 24 years and said, “sh-t went sideways.” He said he saw the victim run over a board by his garage and he “lost it.” Jagers told police that after he dropped the gun during the struggle, he took his other guns and started walking down the alley with them.
Jagers also admitted to being at the fire station earlier where he saw some prior co-workers. Jagers admitted to firing a shot from his .44 magnum at the fire station because “he thought it would be funny.” The complaint indicates there’s a separate police case involving the shots fired at the fire station. Jagers told police he does not have a permit to carry a firearm.
Jagers remains in custody on $100,000 bail and his first court appearance is scheduled for Tuesday.
University of Minnesota Public Safety released an alert Friday stating that a person had been shot in the face with a BB about 7:50 p.m. while walking in front of Pioneer Hall at 615 Fulton Street Southeast. The alert stated that the suspect was a male who shot from the third floor of Pioneer Hall. Police reportedly searched the building for a suspect, but no further information was released at the time on whether a suspect was found.
Praise Ikechukwu Anuo Oluwinners, 21, was charged Friday in Hennepin County District Court with five counts of sexual assault related to several incidents that occurred in downtown Minneapolis on Wednesday morning.
The charges came after Oluwinners was released from jail Friday morning without being charged in the alleged groping incidents which occurred around 7:30 a.m. Wednesday in the area of South 3rd Street from Hennepin Avenue to Nicollet Mall.
Oluwinners had been apprehended shortly after the incidents when police found him near the Central Library. The jail record indicates that Oluwinners was released Friday because the 48-hour charging deadline had passed. However, Oluwinners was re-apprehended on a warrant by police Friday evening in the same area where the alleged assaults occurred two days prior.
Charges say Oluwinners approached five different women and groped or touched them without consent. The criminal complaint also references several similar incidents allegedly committed by Oluwinners in Brooklyn Park last month. Oluwinners had been jailed following the Brooklyn Park incidents but was released without charges.
Oluwinners made his first court appearance on the new charges on Monday, and bail was set at $50,000.
Read the full report on Alpha News.
Shots were fired early Saturday morning inside a Northeast Minneapolis residence where police were responding to a report of a large party, according to dispatch audio.
Police arrived at the address in the 300 block of Pierce Street Northeast just before 2 a.m. Saturday and nearly immediately aired that they heard the sound of shots fired from inside the residence. An officer aired that multiple people were running from the residence and hopping nearby fences. Police made entry to clear the home and check for victims. There were no reports of injuries at the time, but police aired that they recovered a gun inside the home. Police requested crime lab personnel to respond to the scene to document and collect evidence. It was unclear from dispatch audio whether anyone was arrested from the site at the time.
A check of public records shows that the home is listed on VRBO.com, a short-term vacation rental property listing site. The home lists on the website for an average fee of $439 per night.
A resident who lives on the next block contacted Crime Watch following the police incident Saturday and said it’s normally a quiet neighborhood, and they thought perhaps the VRBO listing could be new.
It was just a month ago that 19-year-old Raheim Tyrese Cooper of Brooklyn Park was charged in the shooting murder of 20-year-old Abraham Archie-Boy Barbly at a Plymouth house party at another VRBO rental property.
No public information was released by MPD about the Saturday incident.
Brooklyn Park police reported that they responded Sunday about 8:25 p.m. to a report of a business robbery in which a gun was displayed and an employee was assaulted. The robbery took place at Bill’s Market located at 3100 Brookdale Drive. The suspects fled the area on foot. A search perimeter was conducted including a K9 track for the suspects who were not located at the time. The incident remains under investigation.
Around Minnesota
Richard Melvin Peterson II, 39, of Isanti was sentenced Friday in Isanti County District Court to nearly 24 years in prison in the August 2021 death of Amanda Vangrinsven.
Peterson pled guilty in February to the shooting homicide. Charges in the case say Peterson offered to drive the apparently intoxicated Vangrinsven home from the local VFW where she worked but was off duty. Peterson was the Vice Commander of the VFW at the time. Witnesses later told investigators that they were concerned for Vangrinsven after observing her and Peterson touching each other in an affectionate manner as Peterson was married.
The two left the VFW and traveled to another bar where they were again observed continuing their affectionate behavior. Witnesses said that behavior changed, however, becoming less friendly and affectionate just before the two left the second bar just after 11 p.m.
Peterson admitted to the allegation in the charges that said he drove Vangrinsven back to his property, shot her in the head, and then buried her body with a backhoe.
Offenders in Minnesota are only required to serve two-thirds of their sentence incarcerated, which means that Peterson has an anticipated release date set for June 2037 after serving just under 16 years in prison.
In related sentencing news, senate Democrats passed a bill Friday that aims to dramatically reduce prison sentences for violent offenders even further. Read the full report on Alpha News.
A Pope County, Minn., sheriff’s deputy was shot and killed Saturday while responding to a domestic incident in the town of Cyrus.
Deputy Josh Owen was one of three officers injured by gunfire in the incident.
From the Pope County, MN Sheriff's Office:
As has been reported, Deputy Josh Owen has served the Pope County Sheriff’s Office for nearly twelve years. The attached picture shows Deputy Owen with his beloved canine Karma.Deputy Owen had a heart as big as his stature. He leaves… pic.twitter.com/5xrJV7HUKK
— CrimeWatchMpls (@CrimeWatchMpls) April 16, 2023
A statement released by the Pope County Sheriff’s Office said that shortly before 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, April 15, officers from the Glenwood and Starbuck Police Departments and the Pope County Sheriff’s Office were dispatched to a residential address in Cyrus on a domestic call.
At one point during the attempted arrest, there was an exchange of gunfire between officers and a man at the home. One Starbuck officer and two Pope County Deputy Sheriffs were struck by gunfire.
The Starbuck officer was injured but was not hospitalized. One Pope County Sheriff’s Deputy was treated for injuries and released. The other Deputy [Owen] arrived at the medical facility in critical condition and later passed away from his injuries.
The subject, a man, was also struck and killed during the exchange of gunfire.
The Pope County Sheriff’s Office asked the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension to investigate the incident. The BCA is expected to provide further updates following an investigation.
The Pope County Sheriff’s Office has listed several memorial funds on its Facebook Page that have been set up to help Deputy Owen’s family in the aftermath of his death.
How to help 💙 pic.twitter.com/fSvmgsVjG5
— Liz Collin (@lizcollin) April 17, 2023
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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.
