St. Paul encampment shooting leads to murder charges for Aitkin man

ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - The death of a man at a homeless encampment in St. Paul has led to murder charges for an Aitkin man who police believe shot him over a fentanyl purchase.

St. Paul encampment murder

What we know:

Francisco Diaz-Xique, 22, of Aitkin, is charged with second-degree murder in connection to the shooting death of a 36-year-old man.

According to St. Paul police, officers responded around 1:15 p.m. to an encampment at the Trout Brook Nature Sanctuary near Maryland Avenue East and Jackson Street on July 20, 2025.

At the scene, officers found the victim lying on his chest inside a tent with apparent gunshot wounds. He was ultimately announced dead at 1:28 p.m., police said.

Encampment shooting investigation

Dig deeper:

During their investigation, officers found eight 9mm shell casings outside his tent that were all fired from the same weapon.

Using surveillance footage from the nearby Foundry Pub, police identified a Lexus that was linked to Diaz-Xique near the encampment, court documents state.

When authorities searched the vehicle, they reportedly recovered a box containing 42 9mm cartridges from its front seat. Officers also found what they believed to be a hand-recorded drug ledger.

Around 3:50 p.m. that same day, another officer was approached by a man when he was buying drinks at a convenience store at 390 Maryland Avenue East. 

During the encounter, the man asked to shake the officer's hand, at which point he was allegedly handed a piece of paper that said "he and his girl did it" during the exchange, charges state. He then whispered a phone number that was tied to Diaz-Xique, police said.

Police later learned from informants that Diaz-Xique had allegedly frequented the encampment to sell drugs in the days leading up to the shooting, the criminal complaint says. 

Informants told police that they believe the victim might have been shot over being fronted a "ball" – slang for 3.5 grams – that he did not intend to pay back, charges said. Fentanyl typically sells for $100–120 a gram, police said.

When searching the victim’s tent, police found a piece of paper with a phone number written on it, and the words "king plug." The number was connected to Diaz-Xique, according to the charges. Police believe the term "plug" to be slang for a drug dealer or connection.

What's next:

A nationwide warrant has been issued for Diaz-Xique’s arrest.