A 20-year-old man is charged with shooting a man in the back of the head at point-blank range on a Minneapolis street, leaving the victim hospitalized with serious brain injuries.
Tahdre Larry Tennin, of Minneapolis, is charged in Hennepin County District Court with first-degree assault causing great bodily harm and first-degree aggravated robbery. Bail was set at $150,000.
According to the criminal complaint, Minneapolis police responded to a report of a shooting near E. 15th St. and Nicollet Avenue on March 7.
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Officers found the victim lying on the front steps of an apartment building with a gunshot wound to the back of his head. He was transported to a hospital where serious brain injuries were observed. As of the filing of the complaint, the victim remained hospitalized in serious condition.
Surveillance footage showed a dark Chevrolet SUV arrive and park near the scene. Four people got out, including a co-defendant identified as Ajay Joseph Meyer, 19. About eight minutes later, a second vehicle arrived. A witness identified Tennin as the person who exited the rear passenger seat. Video showed one member of the group hand Meyer an object consistent with a semiautomatic handgun.
The group walked to where the victim was standing. Several members put their hands on the victim and a physical struggle began. One member struck the victim with his hand while another walked away carrying the victim's sweatshirt. The remaining group continued to struggle with the victim for several seconds.
The video showed the victim turn toward the camera with his hands up. Tennin was visible holding a pistol to the back of the victim's head. A muzzle flash was captured near the victim's head, and the victim fell to the ground. Tennin and his accomplices ran to their vehicles and left.
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On March 13, police executed a search warrant at a residence in Inver Grove Heights and arrested Meyer and another member of the group. Officers recovered a handgun and a 9mm cartridge. Forensic testing confirmed the recovered pistol matched the discharged cartridge case found at the shooting scene.
Tennin was arrested March 20 during a search warrant in Mahtomedi. In a post-Miranda interview, he admitted to being present at the scene, handling a firearm that was being passed among his companions and walking to the entryway where the victim was shot. He admitted running away with his companions after the shooting.
First-degree assault and first-degree aggravated robbery each carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
