Three charged in Brooklyn Center street racing incident

BROOKLYN CENTER, Minn. -- Three people face charges stemming from a late-April street racing incident in Brooklyn Center, following a recent crackdown by the State Patrol and Minneapolis Police Department.

Charging documents say that around 11 p.m. on April 23, Evandro Ballarini Dos Santos, 35, was driving a Dodge Caravan that zoomed and spun in the intersection at Shingle Creek Boulevard and Summit Drive. Three passengers, including Dos Santos' 13-year-old son, were hanging out the window.

At one point, the car whipped close to a group of spectators, charges state. The two adult passengers in the car - Ayyoob Dawood Abdus-Salam and Isac David Romero - each face a riot charge. Dos Santos was charged in Hennepin County with riot, child endangerment, and reckless driving.

A loaded firearm was found inside the car, which documents say belonged to Dos Santos, who also admitted to being the driver of the car. 

Charges say that between January 1 to July 8, 2022, the Minneapolis emergency communications center has received 299 calls of street racing complaints. Organizers will ask via social media for people to meet up at an intersection for a "take-over" that can draw several hundred people. 

"Gatherings have produced significant criminal behavior and endangered the public safety," charges documents state.

Officials say that in the last two weeks, eight people have been arrested and charged with riot and criminal damage felonies. The State Patrol helicopter that tracks street racers has increased its flight time by 25%.