MN CRIME

09/19/2025

A Minnesota woman has pled guilty in federal court to running a nationwide counterfeit medical device scheme that defrauded franchise owners of more than $2 million and left some patients injured.

Tammy Wadsworth, 63, pled guilty Wednesday in federal court to possessing altered, forged, or counterfeit medical products which she claimed could cure serious illnesses and diseases.

09/19/2025

A Carver man has been federally charged in connection with an animal torture scheme that prosecutors say involved hundreds of videos published on YouTube.

Federal authorities announced Tuesday that 32-year-old Bryan Wesley Edison has been indicted on sixteen counts of animal crushing, a federal crime that carries significant penalties.

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According to the indictment, Edison produced and distributed nearly 350 videos since 2022 showing animals being tortured, drowned, dismembered, suffocated and killed. Officials say he operated multiple pay-per-view YouTube channels where he sold subscriptions to access the content. Some videos were free, but others required monthly fees ranging from $0.99 to $99.99, with the highest tier offering “custom” torture videos commissioned by subscribers. Prosecutors say Edison openly marketed his most graphic content behind these paid memberships.

The criminal complaint alleges that Edison staged his videos by placing live animals into enclosed spaces like playpens, bathtubs and showers, sometimes dressing them in costumes or arranging props before recording their prolonged torture and deaths. The victims included small mammals, birds, rabbits, reptiles, dogs and turtles. Prosecutors say Edison often narrated the clips, using phrases such as “Shredder, do your worst” and “the poor black bunny is losing air by the second,” while describing the animals’ suffering.

Edison also developed logos, sold merchandise tied to his channels and used clickbait titles to attract viewers. Federal investigators say his video descriptions contained terms such as “slow death,” “tear apart,” “screaming” and “kills mouse brutally” to emphasize the content. His channels were eventually removed by YouTube for repeated and severe policy violations.

Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson said in a statement that animal crushing is not only sickening but also a serious federal crime. “When someone takes pleasure in the torture of defenseless animals, it signals a deeper danger to our community. Especially in these troubled times, we will not allow these warning signs to go unchecked,” Thompson said. FBI Minneapolis Special Agent in Charge Alvin M. Winston Sr. called the acts “an appalling abuse of power over vulnerable creatures” and said the FBI will continue to rigorously enforce federal animal cruelty laws.

Congress expanded the federal animal crushing statute in 2019 with the Preventing Animal Cruelty and Torture Act, signed by then-President Trump. The law makes it illegal to intentionally crush, burn, drown, impale or otherwise subject living animals to serious injury. Lawmakers cited concerns that those who commit acts of torture against animals may also pose broader risks to public safety.

Edison made his first appearance in federal court Tuesday. The case remains under investigation by the FBI.

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09/19/2025

A Minneapolis man has been charged in connection with the shooting death of his former girlfriend on Sunday evening in north Minneapolis.

Prosecutors say 50-year-old David Eugene Wright is accused of killing Mariah Samuels near her vehicle on Sept. 14.

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He faces one count of second-degree intentional murder and one count of unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon.

According to the complaint, police were dispatched to the 1400 block of Russell Avenue North after multiple 911 calls and a ShotSpotter alert reported gunfire. Officers arrived to find Samuels near the open driver’s side door of a Jeep Compass. She had multiple gunshot wounds to her torso and was pronounced dead at the scene. Investigators recovered 15 shell casings near the Jeep.

Samuels was the protected party in an active Order for Protection against Wright, which had been granted just over two weeks earlier. In her petition, she wrote that she had ended their relationship in late August and that Wright had threatened her with a gun, struck her, and attempted to choke her. She expressed fear for her safety, and the court issued the protective order on Aug. 27.

Witnesses told police they heard two bursts of gunfire separated by screaming. One man said he saw a person with dreadlocks shoot the victim at close range, attempt to pull her from the vehicle, and then flee on a bicycle while carrying a gun. Another neighbor reported hearing ten shots and later saw the suspect manipulating something in his hand, which appeared to be a firearm.

Surveillance footage provided by residents showed a man on a bicycle in the area. Police compared the footage with Wright’s driver’s license photo and concluded they matched. Wright was arrested the following day in Anoka. During an interview at the Hennepin County Jail, police say Wright admitted knowing the victim and told officers, “I’m not going to fight this situation,” adding, “This is not going to be a hard-fought case.” He also suggested officers review his text exchanges with the victim to “understand why he did this.”

Family members told investigators Samuels had recently reported Wright contacting her in violation of the protective order, sending her messages expressing jealousy over her being with another man. Police also obtained video from August showing Wright assaulting her.

Wright has a prior felony drug conviction from 2006, making it illegal for him to possess fi****ms or ammunition. He is also on federal probation. Bail has been set at $1 million, and he remains in custody.

If convicted of second-degree murder, Wright faces up to 40 years in prison. The firearm possession charge carries a maximum penalty of nearly one year in jail and a $3,000 fine.

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09/18/2025

An Anoka County man is facing multiple felony charges after prosecutors say he pointed a gun at a group of teenagers playing a game near his Ham Lake home and threatened to shoot them.

According to the criminal complaint, the confrontation happened around 10 p.m. Sept. 13 on 7th Street Northeast, where five teenagers told officers they had stopped their vehicle to play a hide-and-seek style game.

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Three of the teens got out of the car and two stayed inside when a man approached, yelling at them and saying they were in the wrong area. The teens reported the man appeared intoxicated, cursed at them, and pulled out a handgun. When one of the teens tried to explain what they were doing, the man allegedly pointed the gun at him and said that if he took another step, he would “end him.”

The complaint states the man then shifted his focus to the two teenage girls in the car, pointing the gun inside the vehicle and demanding that the passenger roll down her window. The girls told him they were scared and tried to leave, but he continued waving the firearm and shouting profanities before ordering the group to get back into the car and leave.

Deputies identified the suspect as 37-year-old Alexander Lewis Becker, who lives at a residence in the same location as described by the teens. When contacted at his home, Becker admitted approaching the teenagers with a .38 caliber revolver in hand and acknowledged yelling at them and using profanity, but claimed he believed they might have been connected to a theft at his home the week before. According to the complaint, when officers told him the teens were afraid they would be shot, he responded, “I don’t care.”

Investigators executed a search warrant at Becker’s residence and located a revolver under a mattress in a basement bedroom. They also found an open gun safe with multiple fi****ms and ammunition, as well as a loaded pistol on top of a dresser. Officers noted that children’s toys and clothing were in the same room, the door to the room was blocked open and missing a doorknob, and Becker’s four children, ages 9 months to 11 years, lived in the home. Prosecutors said the unsecured weapons posed a serious risk of access by children.

Becker has been charged with five counts of second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon, one count of threats of violence with reckless disregard, and one gross misdemeanor count of negligent storage of fi****ms accessible to children. Each assault count carries a maximum sentence of seven years in prison, while the threats of violence charge carries up to five years, and the negligent storage charge carries up to 364 days in jail.

Becker made an initial court appearance on Tuesday. A judge set bail at $100,000 without conditions, or $50,000 with conditions. Jail records show he was released later that day.

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09/18/2025

A Minneapolis man has been sentenced to more than 33 years in prison after pleading guilty to killing a 24-year-old man last fall.

Prosecutors said 39-year-old Jason Jerrell Herron entered a guilty plea Thursday to one count of second-degree intentional murder.

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Herron, who also goes by William Howard Sanders IV, was immediately sentenced to 400 months in prison. He will receive credit for 380 days already served in custody. Prosecutors had previously indicted him on a first-degree murder charge that carried the possibility of life in prison, but that charge was dismissed as part of the plea agreement.

Police were called around 7 p.m. Sept. 3, 2024, to the area of 1st Avenue South and East 19th Street, where they found De’Jaun Hall suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. Despite lifesaving efforts, he died at the scene.

Investigators reviewed surveillance video showing Herron arguing with Hall before pulling a gun from a f***y pack. Hall ran, but Herron chased him around a parked car and shot him in the back. After Hall fell, Herron walked up to him as he lay on the ground with his empty hands raised, pointed a firearm at his head and fired two more shots before walking away.

Police arrested Herron two days later at a hotel. A search of a vehicle linked to him turned up the same f***y pack and a 9-millimeter handgun inside. The medical examiner’s report confirmed Hall had three gunshot wounds, including two to the head.

In an interview with police, Herron admitted to the shooting. He first claimed he had been smoking P*P and didn’t remember what was going on in his mind. He later said he acted in self-defense, though he acknowledged he never saw Hall or anyone else with a firearm. He told investigators he became suspicious because Hall was wearing a hooded sweatshirt on a warm day.

“This was a terrible act of violence. Mr. Sanders needlessly escalated an argument by drawing and using a firearm to kill De’Jaun Hall,” Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty said in a statement after the plea. “My thoughts are with De’Jaun’s family as this case is resolved. We can do nothing to return the person they lost but Mr. Sanders will be held accountable, and our community is safe from further harm at his hands.”

Herron is expected to be transferred from the Hennepin County Jail to a state correctional facility in the coming days.

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09/18/2025

MINNEAPOLIS: 1800 Emerson Ave. N. – Police are on scene after one person was shot in the stomach on the third floor of an apartment building. Fire crews and paramedics have been cleared into the scene. Officers are checking other nearby apartments for a possible second victim.

09/17/2025

MAPLEWOOD: near 3033 Hazelwood St. – Multiple callers reported two suspicious white males carrying a newborn baby wearing only a diaper. They were last seen walking on the Bruce Vento trail before cutting into the woods westbound. Officers are checking tents in the area, and Ramsey County is assisting with drones. Additional squads are responding to set a perimeter around the area.

UPDATE: Embedded social workers spoke with residents near the encampment, who said they are familiar with the two men and reported they often push a stroller with a doll inside. Authorities say the two white males are also unsheltered. Officers identified the pair and located them nearby. One of the men had an active felony warrant and was taken into custody. The perimeter is now clearing as officials believe the reported baby was a doll, though it has not been found. No missing babies have been reported since the incident began.

09/17/2025

SAINT PAUL: Near Midway Saloon, 1567 University Ave. W. – Officers responded to shots fired around 8:35 p.m. and found a victim in a nearby alley with a gunshot wound to the upper thigh. The suspect, described as a juvenile Black male wearing a black mask, black shorts, black sweatshirt, black shoes and armed with a black gun. Shell casings were recovered from the eastbound Green Line LRT platform and the suspect was last seen running south on Snelling Ave.

A State Patrol helicopter was requested to assist in the suspect search and was circling overhead by around 9:15 p.m. A canine track was underway in the area and two drones also being used nearby.

Metro Transit says there would be Green Line service delays to the Snelling station until later today due to the incident.

UPDATE: By around 9:45 p.m., the search had been called off, with the suspect not yet located. Call 911 if you have any information.

09/16/2025

A South St. Paul man has been charged in connection with a deadly shooting that left one person dead and another seriously injured early Friday morning. Prosecutors charged 19-year-old Terrell Anthony Ranzy after being accused of firing multiple shots inside a crowded bedroom during an attempted robbery, striking both men.

According to the criminal complaint, officers were called just after 3:40 a.m. Sept. 12 to a home on the 300 block of Second Avenue South in South St. Paul on a report of an unresponsive man. Police say they struggled to force open a bedroom door that was blocked and discovered two young men inside with gunshot wounds. Matthew Robert Lee, 20, was found on the floor with no pulse and was pronounced dead at the scene. Another 20-year-old, Keith Woodson Cox, had tourniquets on his arm and wounds to his torso. A black G***k was found on a table nearby.

Investigators spoke with people inside the house and learned that Ranzy and Cox had been comparing guns in the small upstairs bedroom shortly before the shooting. Several other people inside the home told police that Cox later pulled out his firearm and attempted to rob Ranzy of his gun, saying “I need you to give me all that s***.”

Ranzy reportedly fell back onto the bed, fired a shot into the ceiling, then crouched and opened fire, striking Cox and Lee. Witnesses told police they believed Cox fired his weapon as well, and investigators collected 14 discharged casings from two calibers, indicating both guns had been fired. Witnesses described Lee as an innocent bystander.

Police say Ranzy fled the house after the gunfire but was found shortly afterward hiding in a nearby shed. A search of the area did not turn up a firearm. An autopsy determined Lee died from two gunshot wounds and ruled his death a homicide. Ranzy is prohibited from having guns following a January conviction for threats of violence in Ramsey County.

Ranzy now faces three felony counts: second-degree murder while committing a felony, second-degree manslaughter for culpable negligence and possession of a firearm by an ineligible person. If convicted, the top charge carries up to 40 years in prison.

Court records show Ranzy made an initial court appearance Tuesday afternoon where bail was set at $750,000 without conditions or $400,000 with conditions. Those conditions include no contact with witnesses, surrendering his passport and not leaving Minnesota without court approval. He must also surrender any fi****ms, remain law-abiding and stay away from the address where the shooting occurred.

Ranzy’s next court appearance is scheduled for Sept. 25. Authorities have not released further updates on additional charges for Cox or his current condition.

09/16/2025

LATEST DETAILS: Eight people were shot late Monday at a homeless encampment near East Lake Street and 28th Avenue South in Minneapolis. Police say the gunfire erupted just after 10 p.m., with authorities confirming four victims with life-threatening injuries and four others with apparent non-life-threatening wounds.

A Minneapolis police officer working off-duty at the nearby Target store was approached by people running in to say there had been gunfire outside. The officer went out and heard more shots coming from the encampment. Responding officers found multiple victims both in tents and outside the encampment.

A woman shot in the head and two men with critical injuries were among those discovered inside tents, police said. Another man had a life-threatening stomach wound, and additional victims were located with gunshot wounds to the leg, torso, and neck.

One man with a non-life-threatening injury walked into Children’s Hospital and was later transferred to Hennepin Healthcare. A woman with a graze wound went to Abbott Northwestern. Another man with gunshot wounds to the neck and torso was taken to Regions Hospital. In total, police confirmed three men and one woman with life-threatening injuries and four other victims with less severe wounds.

MPD Chief Brian O’Hara said investigators collected multiple shell casings but noted the difficulty of searching through the debris in the encampment. At one point during the response, a tent caught fire, and fire crews were called to extinguish it. No arrests have been made, but investigators believe at least two shooters were involved and that gunfire was exchanged. Authorities are still working to determine the motive.

Mayor Jacob Frey said the city has been attempting to close the encampment for months but was blocked by the private property owner. The city had already initiated litigation to declare it a public health nuisance. Frey announced the encampment will be cleared as soon as the crime scene investigation is complete, calling it a danger to both residents and the surrounding neighborhood.

“This is horrible. It is tragic. And it is not surprising. We’re going to be clearing this immediately,” Frey said.

Chief O’Hara said state troopers and sheriff’s deputies will assist Minneapolis police with patrols in the area following the shooting. He stressed that the department remains down roughly a third of its normal staffing while responding to what he described as a surge in violence.

Authorities emphasized that conditions inside encampments are unsafe and that addiction and drug trafficking are driving violence. As of publication, no suspects have been arrested and the investigation remains active. Authorities have not yet released the identities of those injured.

09/16/2025

A Carver County man is in custody after authorities say he strangled his ex-wife and admitted he wanted to kill her during a violent incident at their home last week.

Robert Charles Madsen, 66, was charged with attempted second-degree murder, domestic assault by strangulation and threats of violence in connection with the Sept. 9 assault.

09/16/2025

LATEST DETAILS: Five men were injured Monday morning in a shooting near the I-35W transit station at E. Lake Street in Minneapolis, including one who suffered a life-threatening gunshot to the head.

Officers were called around 11:10 a.m. to near E. Lake St. & Stevens Ave., and found four men shot. Paramedics transported them to hospitals, including one man who was unresponsive but still breathing on the way, radio dispatches and police officials said.