Star Tribune
17-year-old charged with murdering North St. Paul man linked to ghost gun operation
A 17-year-old boy has been charged with shooting and killing a man at a North St. Paul apartment, where police believe the victim was manufacturing ghost guns using a 3-D printer.
Abo Eshun Essilfie faces one count of second-degree murder in the death of Anthony Rojas, 24, who was killed June 19 in his apartment. The Ramsey County Attorney’s Office has indicated it plans to have the teenager’s case moved to adult court.
A confidential informant told police that Essilfie and 19-year-old Octavion Rayshawn Jones were supposed to rob Rojas of his ghost guns, but that Essilfie shot him, according to the juvenile petition.
Jones and two other 19-year-olds — La Vida Rose Martinez and Steven Terry — have each been arrested and charged with aiding and abetting murder in the case.
Police responded shortly after 6 p.m. and went to Rojas’ apartment in the 2100 block of McKnight Road N. Officers found a black shotgun and a bulletproof vest in the hallway of the apartment unit, and Rojas was found farther down the hallway with a gunshot wound, according to the petition.
Neighbors, who had heard a shot, then saw several people running from the building, some carrying guns. Rojas was pronounced dead shortly before 7 p.m.
Officers found bags containing 15 3-D-printed ghost handguns and three long guns discarded near the apartment building, according to a search warrant affidavit by a Bureau of Criminal Apprehension officer. Gun parts were scattered throughout Rojas’ apartment, and police suspect the apartment was used to manufacture and distribute unlicensed guns, the officer wrote.
Jones told police that “everyone” at the apartment had guns, and that they were passing them around, the petition alleges. Jones said he went to the bathroom when he heard a loud bang.
Upon exiting the bathroom, Jones said Essilfie “gave him a look and told him to grab a bag full of guns,” the petition alleges.
Essilfie was arrested Friday while entering a vehicle, according to the petition which doesn’t specify his residence. Police found a .40-caliber handgun inside the passenger compartment, which is the same caliber of gun they believe was used to kill Rojas. The gun was stolen from somewhere in St. Paul, the petition says.
Investigators tracking Jones’ cellphone found it was at Rojas’ apartment until just after Rojas was shot, the charges allege. Martinez allegedly told police that Jones was in Rojas’ apartment when he was shot.
“In here, it can be a very dark and lonely place, and it can be difficult to see the light at the end of the tunnel,” Benson said. “Events like this just help keep that hope alive.”
While the incarcerated people listened, they were joined at tables by prison staff, guards, the warden, and others, including Corrections Commissioner Paul Schnell, who stood against a brick wall. A couple of inmates, who work as photographers for the prison’s newspaper, strolled the cafeteria taking pictures.
When the performance went longer than expected, the warden smiled and gave the performers a thumbs up. He was fine with letting it continue. When it was done, the musicians took a handful of questions and signed flyers. Then inmates were guided back to their cells.
Hennepin County Board candidate Marisa Simonetti was arraigned in District Court on Thursday morning on a misdemeanor charge of 5th-degree assault after a dispute with a tenant of her Edina home.
Simonetti, who was arrested and jailed in June on allegations that she assaulted the tenant by throwing a live tarantula and other objects at the woman, stayed in the court hallway Thursday while her attorney John Daly handled the routine appearance. Simonetti was given a Jan. 9 pre-trial date and plans to plead not guilty.
Wearing a campaign T-shirt, Simonetti said after the court proceeding that she’s done nothing wrong and plans to fight the charge “to the death.”
Simonetti said her campaign for the District 6 seat is going well and that she sent out “a ton of texts” last week. “We’re getting feedback, positive feedback. It’s going to be very exciting to see what happens on Nov. 5,” she said.
An email to Simonetti’s opponent, Commissioner Heather Edelson, was not immediately returned Thursday.
In April, Simonetti came in second in a six-candidate special primary for an open seat on the board and then lost the special election Edelson, a DFLer and former state representative. Simonetti has campaigned as a Republican, although some local Republicans have since pulled their support for her.
The board oversees the county’s $2.7 billion budget and 10,000 employees. Commissioners earn $122,225 annually.
District 6, which covers cities including Edina, Hopkins, Mound, Minnetonka, Wayzata, Long Lake, Shorewood and the northern portion of Eden Prairie.
“I wanted to be just like him, to love every part of the competition, to be the first to show up and the last to leave, to love the grind, to be your best when you don’t feel your best and make other people around you the best version of themselves,” Ionescu said. “And to wake up and do it again the next day.”
In her final season with the Ducks, Ionescu became the first NCAA Division I basketball player to record more then 2,000 career points, 1,000 assists and 1,000 rebounds. She dedicated the performance that put her over the edge to Bryant. “That was for him,” she told ESPN.
“I can’t really put it into words,” Ionescu said. “He’s looking down and really proud of me and just really happy for this moment with my team.”
Ionescu is a menace from behind the 3-point line like Steph Curry, Luka Doncic and Caitlin Clark
Ionescu has made more three-pointers during the regular season than any other WNBA player in history.
Ionescu’s clutch three might give Minnesota basketball fans deja vu. It was reminiscent of the three-pointer Luka Doncic of the Dallas Mavericks sank in Game 2 of the Western Conference Finals to win that game 109-108 and put the Timberwolves on their heels. The Mavs ended up winning the series 4-1.
GIPHY App Key not set. Please check settings