EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. — The brother of a 7-year-old who was found unresponsive at their parent's Eden Prairie home on Tuesday has now been charged with murder in connection with the child's death.
Charging documents filed Friday in Hennepin County accuse 28-year-old Dalal Idd of one count of second-degree murder in the death of his younger sibling, identified Thursday as Abdullahi Gelle, on the night of Sept. 12. If convicted, Idd faces a maximum sentence of 40 years behind bars.
Prosecutors allege that Idd made several phone calls to 911, claiming he "didn't know what he just did" before telling dispatchers he hurt someone else "for the greater good," and that, "God told me to do something to prove that I'm not God."
When emergency responders arrived to his parent's home in Eden Prairie, authorities found Idd inside, where he told them he was afraid his mother "might kill him" because he had "done something that may have her want to kill me." Court documents said police then searched the home after taking Idd to the hospital for an evaluation.
During their search, the criminal complaint alleges, police found two children sleeping in their beds before finding a third child, now identified as Gelle, unconscious and not breathing. Officers attempted to save Gelle's life, but he was declared dead a short time later at a local hospital. Responding officers reported seeing petechial hemorrhages, or broken blood vessels, around Gelle's eyes.
According to the HCME, the child's body also showed signs of petechial hemorrhaging in other areas on their upper body, including on his face and back. Although the doctor who performed the Gelle's autopsy reported there were no signs of life-threatening injuries or disease, they noted petechial hemorrhaging is usually seen in strangulation cases.
The complaint said that at this time, the child's case is pending further investigation.
Idd was booked Wednesday morning into the Hennepin County Jail, where he remains.
In the days following Gelle's death, one of his cousins set up a GoFundMe to support the family, saying the boy "lit up every room he walked into" and "he was loved by everyone who knew him." If you're interested in donating, you can visit the fundraiser here.
Idd's family has been in the headlines previously; his brother, Dolal Idd, was killed by Minneapolis police in December 2020 after he shot at them from inside his car in a gas station parking lot during a sting operation.
WATCH MORE ON KARE 11+
Download the free KARE 11+ app for Roku, Fire TV, Apple TV and other smart TV platforms to watch more from KARE 11 anytime! The KARE 11+ app includes live streams of all of KARE 11's newscasts. You'll also find on-demand replays of newscasts; the latest from KARE 11 Investigates, Breaking the News and the Land of 10,000 Stories; exclusive programs like Verify and HeartThreads; and Minnesota sports talk from our partners at Locked On Minnesota.
- Add KARE 11+ on Roku here or by searching for KARE 11 in the Roku Channel Store.
- Add KARE 11+ on Fire TV here or by searching for KARE 11 in the Amazon App Store.
- Learn more about the KARE 11+ app for Apple TV in the Apple App Store.
- Learn more about KARE 11+ here.
Watch more local news:
Watch the latest local news from the Twin Cities and across Minnesota in our YouTube playlist:
