AUSTIN, Minn — Two men had their first court appearances Monday on murder charges, stemming from a fatal drive-by shooting Friday in Austin, Minnesota.
Twenty-three-year-old Manamany Abella and 28-year-old Cham Oman, both of Austin, are each charged with two counts of second-degree murder, two counts of attempted murder and one count of recklessly discharging a firearm toward another person. If convicted, each murder charge alone carries a sentence of up to 40 years in prison.
According to court documents, the charges stem from a June 9 incident in which authorities were alerted to a possible car accident with injuries. Officers arrived to the 700 block of 4th Street North around 10:40 p.m., where they found a vehicle that had crashed into a home. The complaint said officers approached the vehicle, finding its driver, a man, dead. Officers also located another man and a woman suffering from gunshot wounds, who officers determined were inside the vehicle at the time of the driver's death.
Later at the hospital, one of the victims claimed the vehicle they were traveling in had been following Oman and Abella to "pick something up," before Oman allegedly pulled up next to their vehicle in a Dodge Durango and started shooting at the victims.
The complaint goes on to say officers with the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) found numerous shell casings and one live round where the shooting allegedly began.
In the days following the shooting, authorities reported that they had arrested Abella and Oman and located the Durango in which police had launched a widespread public search.
According to Mower County Jail records, Abella remains in custody on $1 million bond, while Oman was released Monday to another authorized facility, where he is also being held on a $1 million bond.
The shooting victim's identity has not yet been released but is forthcoming pending an autopsy and family notification by the Southern Minnesota Regional Medical Examiner.
The suspects' next hearing is scheduled for June 26.
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