St. Cloud Man, 18, Accused Of Shooting Man 3 Times & Fleeing
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- An 18-year-old St. Cloud man has been charged in a shooting that left a man critically injured, according to the Stearns County Attorney's Office.
Nathaniel Leon Smith faces charges of first- and second-degree attempted murder in connection to the Wednesday, March 30 incident.
Police first responded at 12:55 a.m. Wednesday to the 100 block of 18th Avenue North where they found 21-year-old Antoine Dajuan Fair with multiple gunshot wounds to his head and neck area.
Police say Fair suffered three gunshot wounds. One entered through the left side of his neck, injured the carotid artery and is lodged in his jaw. Another entered the back of his head and lodged in his brain. The other bullet struck the lower right of his back.
Later that evening, at around 8 p.m., police arrested Smith at a home on Riverside Avenue South in Sartell.
According to the complaint, Smith initially denied involvement, but later admitted to shooting Fair. He claimed he was acting in defense of another individual that Fair was allegedly assaulting. He said he shot Fair in the back and two more times in the chest when Fair allegedly charged towards him. That, however, conflicts with the medical reports, which determined that Fair was not shot from the front.
A witness at a nearby residence said she heard a gunshot followed by two more gunshots. She said that after the first shot, she saw the shooter with a handgun standing over Fair and saw him shoot Fair two more times, the complaint said.
Smith's bail has been set at $1 million unconditional and $500,000 with conditions. His next court date is set for April 11, 2016.
If convicted, Smith could face up to 20 years in prison per charge.