2 Men Accused Of Threatening Winona Student With Meat Saw
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Two Winona men are accused of kidnapping and forcing a Winona college student to strip before they allegedly threatened to cut him up with a meat saw.
The bizarre case unfolded in the early morning hours Sunday near downtown Winona. Court documents say a Winona college student told police he had been drinking and was lost when Abdirahman Samatar and John Demaske approached him and forced him into a nearby warehouse.
Public records show Demaske's address is a grocery warehouse half a block away. The student says Demaske and Samatar then "made him strip naked and sit on a chair."
The student said the men then slapped him, threatened to rape and kill him, and also "turned on the meat saw," threatening that "he was going to be cut."
Court documents reveal a different version of part of the story. Demaske told police that he caught the student trying to break in and that he suspected the student might have stolen from him before.
Neighbors would not go on camera but told WCCO Demaske had recently been the target of frequent break-ins
Demaske told the student he could leave after about 30 minutes, and the student ran naked outside.
Police found him a block away, where two friends were "holding flannel shirts around him," and he was "crying hysterically."
Police went to the warehouse and arrested Samatar and Demaske. Both were given a portable breath tests. The results of the tests are not being made public.
Winona police declined to comment. Samatar remains in jail, while Demaske is free on $25,000 bond.
WCCO was unable to reach Demaske for comment.