MINNEAPOLIS — Two teens are charged after they claimed to have not known the person who police believed shot and killed a 15-year-old girl Saturday in north Minneapolis.
The two teens are both charged by juvenile petition with aiding an offender after their 15-year-old cousin was found shot inside a home in the Folwell neighborhood Saturday afternoon. The teens, ages 16 and 17, each told police they didn't know the suspect was in the home at the time of the shooting.
Police responded to a report of a shooting on the 3400 block of Logan Avenue North at around 1:50 p.m. Saturday. When officers arrived, they found a 15-year-old girl lying on the floor with a single gunshot wound to her chest. When police arrived, officials said the teens were standing with the victim. The teens later told police the victim was their cousin Tyra Kiyae Terry.
Police found a loaded, clear extended magazine containing 9mm ammunition, the same bullet recovered from the victim.
According to the petition, police believe a gun was "handled negligently" when it went off. The girl, who was shot in the chest, was transported to North Memorial where she was pronounced dead.
Multiple witnesses were interviewed following the shooting, claiming that they heard boys yelling "It was an accident" after the shot went off. One of the witnesses told police they went upstairs after hearing the gunshot, at which point one of her son's friends, the suspected shooter, walked past them. Police interviewed a second witness who was told "The gun just went off." That witness told police they didn't see the gun or who shot the 15-year-old girl, but did say the suspect was trying to help the girl before leaving the house.
When the two teens were interviewed, they claimed to have not known the suspect was in the home at the time of the shooting. One of the teens told police they were playing video games and didn't hear the gun go off. The other teen said they were sleeping at the time of the shooting.
