HomeMy WebLinkAbout2015 12-21 St. Paul man charged in killing of Maplewood father PIONEER PRESS 12/21/2015 St.Paul man charged in killing of Maplewood father-TwinCities.com
St. Paul man charged in killing of Maplewood father
Updated:12/21/2015 08.'27:23 AM CST Twin Cit ie s.co m
St. Paul man charged in killing of Maplewood father
A St. Paul man who is reportedly part of a burglary ring that targets marijuana dealers has been
charged with killing a father of two last month in Maplewood.
•,, Brandon Lamar Cooper, 30, already was in custody in connection with a Minneapolis burglary
when he was charged Friday with the second-degree murder of Justin Niles Wright, according to
the complaint filed in Ramsey County District Court.Wright, 31,was found dead on his living room
floor shortly before 5 a.m. Nov. 7 after his girlfriend called 911 to report a shooting.
� �� ��:
According to the complaint, the woman told officers she and Wright had been asleep when she
� � «� � _ awoke to a strange voice just outside the bedroom sa in
y g, "Tell me where iYs at."She said Wright
' also was in the hallway and she saw him lunge toward a dark figure. She said she heard a single
�'
�„�,, ; gunshot and then Wright staggered through the house until he collapsed in the living room.
�r -
�` � WrighYs two children were away at a sleepover at the time. His girifriend was not injured.
�'/J//�� �
'` The woman admitted to police that she and Wright sold marijuana from the house at 2272 Hazel
�' ' n�b- " St. and some of her customers knew they kept"significant amounts of manjuana"there, according
¢�� �� to the criminal complaint.
vv.,��:
�;,
Police found signs of forced entry in the garage and a 9mm shell casing in the bedroom hallway.
�ti �,� Later that day they found a Smith &Wesson 9mm handgun two blocks away. DNA from the
BrandonLamarCooper(PhotocourtesyRamseyCounty handgun matched DNA on file forCooper, according to the complaint.
shenK̵T,s oBice)
Police also tracked Cooper's cellphone to the area of WrighYs home during the time of the
shooting, according to the complaint.
An informant told police that Cooper was part of a burglary ring that targeted known marijuana dealers. Investigators got a warrant to put a
GPS tracker on a vehicle Cooper drives and tracked it Monday to Minneapolis.There they saw Cooper and an accomplice burglarize a home on
the 4700 block of Park Avenue, according to the complaint.
�+� - The investigators followed the vehicle back to St. Paul,where they took
E� � ��'° �:�:
�i �'�� r ���� Cooper into custody.
�E+�2'v= � �4✓�/ ,���� 4 �
� ° ��>�'` f �+ On Thursday,according to the complaint, investigators spoke to a
�' �' ��''�!"'���ti � �� `f�, � ""` � cooperating witness who told them the Maplewood burglary was set up by
��- µ� t� '� '� someone who knew WrighYs girlfriend and that there would be marijuana and
b,„� y ,, � money in the house.The witness said Cooper and others forced their way
y ��. ° � � �''�' into the house, there was a gunshot and Cooperfled.The witness said
���,�; ��� Cooper admitted shooting Wright but said he was only trying to scare him.
�;;� >
�, ��� ' � ' .�-�,., Wright bled to death after the bullet struck his left carotid artery,according to
�_ . �'�-"` �� �''`!'•� the Ramsey County medical examiner.
� .�
Cooper has previous felony convictions for theft, robbery and assault.
������t„��''��r
JustinWnght,rna�rmager�omnrsFacebooicpa9e. Maplewood Police Chief Paul Schnell said the investigation continues and
other people could still be charged.
Elizabeth Mohr contributed to this report. Jaime DeLage can be reached at 651-228-5450. Follow him at twitter.com/JaimeDeLage.