Felony murder charges in beating death of college student
MADISON, Wis. -- A Minnesota man with a string of domestic violence convictions was charged in the death of a Saudi Arabian college student stemming from a confrontation in northwestern Wisconsin last year, prosecutors said Friday.
Cullen Osburn, 27, of Minneapolis, was charged with felony murder and aggravated battery in the death of University of Wisconsin-Stout student Hussain Alnahdi, 24, in October. Authorities began speaking with Osburn soon after Alnahdi’s death, but he disappeared after telling police the altercation wasn’t based on race and promising to come in to talk to detectives, according to the criminal complaint.
Online court records didn’t list a defense attorney.
Dunn County District Attorney Andrea Nodolf told the Eau Claire Leader-Telegram newspaper that Osburn was arrested in Minnesota and would have to be extradited. No details of the arrest were given, and Nodolf’s office told The Associated Press she wouldn’t comment. The complaint is dated Nov. 14 but wasn’t filed until Thursday, suggesting Nodolf was waiting until Osburn was in custody. A message left with Menomonie police wasn’t immediately returned.
Alnahdi was a business major at the UW campus in Menomonie.
Alnahdi, who was from Saudi Arabia, was taken to a local hospital before being airlifted to Mayo Clinic Health System in Eau Claire, CBS Minnesota reports. He died the next day after undergoing surgery to decrease his brain swelling. His official cause of death was a traumatic brain injury.
The victim’s friends told investigators they had been drinking with him on the night of Oct. 30 at their residence until about 1 a.m., when Alnahdi decided to leave to go to some local bars.
Alnahdi’s friend, Evan Walters, told police on Nov. 2 that he bumped into Alnahdi outside of Toppers just before the fight. Walters said he was chatting with Alnahdi when a man later identified as Osburn approached them and starting arguing with the victim for an unknown reason. Walters said he tried to separate Alnahdi and Osburn when the defendant pushed him. Walter said he next saw Alnahdi on the ground, but did not witness him getting pushed or hit by Osburn.
Osburn’s brother, Deontre Hughes, told police he saw Alnahdi and another man pushing Osburn. He said that Osburn swung at Alnahdi after Alnahdi ripped Osburn’s necklace off.
Another witness, Nina Simonette, told police she saw a man talking to Alnahdi, who put his hands up in the air as if to say he didn’t want a problem. The man then hit Alnahdi twice, she told police.
Detectives received a call from Osburn on Nov. 2, two days after Alnahdi’s death, the complaint said. Osburn said he was scared and wanted to cooperate with police but wanted an attorney with him.
“The Defendant was adamant that the altercation was not a result of anybody’s race but did not want to say anything else without a lawyer,” the complaint said.
He called police on Nov. 3 to say he would call them the following day to schedule an interview but never called back and detectives couldn’t find him.
Osburn faces up to six years in prison on each charge, with more possible time due to convictions in Minnesota, including several for domestic abuse and violating no-contact orders going back to 2008.
