Second man charged in Minneapolis shootout that killed off-duty firefighter
MINNEAPOLIS — A second man has been charged in connection to a shootout outside a south Minneapolis bar that killed a metro firefighter.
Dallas Villarreal-Griffin, 26, is facing one count of first-degree riot, according to a complaint filed in Hennepin County last Friday. Marquise Hammonds-Ford, a 28-year-old man from Monticello, is also facing charges for the shooting.
Around 12:40 a.m. on May 5, officers were called to a shooting outside a bar on the 900 block of Cedar Avenue South.
Joseph Johns, an off-duty firefighter for Eden Prairie and Eagan, died in the shooting. He had been at a bar for a private party among several motorcycle groups when shots rang out.
Charges say officers found 63 discharged cartridge casings on both sides of the street in front of the bar. Investigators were able to determine the bullets had been fired by seven different guns.
Police say that after reviewing video evidence of the shooting, "it became clear that Victim's death resulted from an altercation and subsequent shootout between two groups of men standing on opposite sides of the street by the bar."
Charges allege that Hammonds-Ford was yelling and pointing a gun at the other group before he pointed his firearm upward and fired it into the air. In response, both groups began shooting across the street at each other. Johns was caught in the crossfire while directing traffic.
Investigators identified Villareal-Griffin as one of several men who had a firearm in open view during the altercation.
The complaint says that the group including Hammonds-Ford and Villareal-Griffin was trying to "intimidate and/or antagonize" the other group by "indicating preparedness for and intentions for a shootout."
Shortly after the shooting, Hammonds-Ford, along with others, dropped Villareal-Griffin off at the hospital. He had suffered a gunshot wound to the leg during the incident. While in the hospital, Villareal-Griffin denied any involvement in the shootout, police say.
In an interview with investigators after his arrest last Friday, Villareal-Griffin allegedly admitted to participating in the shootout and to possessing a ghost gun.
Villareal-Griffin, who also had warrants out for his arrest for domestic abuse cases, has since been released from jail on a $100,000 bond.
His next court appearance is scheduled for June 10.