Charges: Murder suspect allegedly attacked people with cane at light rail station
ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - A 25-year-old murder suspect is now charged in connection to hitting people with a cane at a light rail station in St. Paul just days before he allegedly stabbed a man to death.
Abdirahman Osman Yusuf is in custody at the Hennepin County Jail for a second-degree murder charge. He allegedly stabbed a man 14 times along West River Parkway on August 12.
Charges filed Tuesday in Ramsey County District Court show Yusuf is also facing two counts of second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon in an alleged attack that happened five days before the murder.
According to the criminal complaint, light rail station surveillance video from Aug. 7 showed Yusuf jumping on the roofs of cars at the intersection of Snelling Avenue North and University Avenue West. He then went into a CVS store and came out with a walking cane. He went up to a Metro Transit worker and swung the cane like a baseball bat, hitting her in the head two times. He also hit another woman, who attempted to step in and help the first victim.
The charges say after another man grabbed Yusuf in an attempt to stop him, Yusuf threw the cane onto the tracks, where Metro Transit police later recovered it.
Each assault charge carries up to a seven-year prison sentence and possible $14,000 fine.