Sheriff Fletcher backs Somali gang task force, calls out Hennepin County leaders
Sheriff calls for task force on Somali gang violence
Ramsey County Sheriff Bob Fletcher is calling for a regional law enforcement task force to address what he describes as Somali gang violence across the Twin Cities.
ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - Ramsey County Sheriff Bob Fletcher threw his support behind a regional task force to tackle Somali gang violence while blaming weak prosecution of crime for letting the issue fester, specifically calling out Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty.
Sheriff Fletcher on Somali gang violence
The backstory:
The sheriff once again weighed in on issues with Somali gang violence after recent shootings in the west metro, including a shooting outside Eden Prairie High School that disrupted the homecoming football game. Fletcher's comments also followed an Edina community meeting on gun violence on Monday where officials were dealing with two recent shootings at Yancey Park and outside Our Lady of Grace Catholic Church. Both shootings may have involved Somali youths as either victims or suspects, police have said.
Just Monday night, Eden Prairie police investigated another shooting at a Speedway gas station, just a couple blocks from Eden Prairie High School, that officers said may be connected to the recent gang violence.
Earlier this year, the sheriff urged action on Somali gangs after a violent July 4 weekend in the Twin Cities, much of which revolved around gang shootings.
Big picture view:
The sheriff made it clear that the individuals responsible for the violence are a small fraction of the greater Somali community.
"I've told you the number is about 300," said Sheriff Fletcher. "We sent 250 letters to known gang members for the state fair. That number still is a good number, but we need to arrest a big chunk of these kids and send a message to the groups as a whole that we're not going to tolerate this type of shooting and violence. And I do want to I want to mention this number again, because this gets really politically contorted. We're talking about a small number of 300 children. There are over 100,000 Somalis living in Minnesota."
Fletcher explained that arresting even just 50 of the estimated 300 gang members would "dramatically" cut crime. He says he'd like to see 25 of those 50 face federal RICO charges.
"We have to be honest, right?" added Ramsey County Deputy Jama Shine. "We do have a gang problem. We do have a Somali gang problem, and we know who these kids are. We know their parents. We know where they live. They're very mobile, and they're causing a lot of problems in the community. I have to say this, the Somali community are not the first immigrants that dealt with gang issues, right? If you look at the 80s and the 90s. The Hmong community, Asian communities, and the only way to overcome it is to address the issue."
Ramsey Co. Sheriff calls out Moriarty over Somali gangs
Ramsey County Sheriff Bob Fletcher called out Hennepin County leaders including County Attorney Mary Moriarty and Sheriff Dawanna Witt over their efforts to confront Somali gang violence.
Hennepin not doing enough?
Local perspective:
The sheriff also called out Hennepin County leaders for not taking enough action to confront the gang violence.
Specifically, he mentioned Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty and Hennepin County Sheriff Dawanna Witt. For Moriarty, the sheriff questioned whether the county attorney's policy on young offenders was effective.
For the sheriff, he said the sheriff's office needed to take a bigger leadership role in confronting the gang issue. It's worth noting Sheriff Witt was part of the Edina meeting on Monday on gang violence.
"I don't actually think it would take any money myself," said Sheriff Fletcher. "It takes commitment. You know, the commitment we made in Ramsey County to retask some of these bodies. Hennepin County Sheriff's Office, we need Dawanna Witt to commit to this project. It cannot succeed over there if the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office doesn't put bodies into this mix, because they're the biggest agency over there."
The other side:
Hennepin County Sheriff Dawanna Witt fired back at Sheriff Fletcher's comments during a press conference Tuesday afternoon in Bloomington. Witt was speaking about a shooting early that morning that police believe was also connected to gang violence.
Sheriff Witt said her department had already repurposed two task forces to focus on gangs that were working to provide information to regional partners. Speaking Tuesday, she told Fletcher to mind his own business.
"He just has a habit of talking about stuff he don't know nothing about," Sheriff Witt said. "He never called me and asked me that question. So just because he doesn't know doesn't mean it's not happening. So he shouldn't mind Ramsey County business."
The Source: This story uses previous FOX 9 reporting and information obtained from law enforcement press conferences.