2 Men Charged With Illegally Possessing Firearms
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Two adult men have been charged with illegally possessing firearms.
On Friday, United States Attorney Erica H. MacDonald announced a criminal complaint charging 27-year-old Jarvae Josiah Somerville of White Bear and 25-year-old Ronald Donte Finley Jr. of Minneapolis, with one count each of possessing a firearm.
Somerville and Finley made their initial court appearance Friday, where they were ordered to remain in custody pending a formal detention hearing, which is scheduled for July 14.
According to the criminal complaint and statements from police, investigators with the Minneapolis Police Department determined that Somerville and Finley were suspects in a north Minneapolis shooting on May 19, 2020.
Authorities conducted surveillance on Somerville and observed him and Finley at a restaurant on Lake Street in Minneapolis. Somerville was inside the restaurant and Finley was outside near an Infinity sedan that the men were driving. When officers approached Finley, he ran from the Infinity sedan, but was apprehended and arrested shortly after.
Inside the vehicle, officers say they found a semi-automatic pistol. When officers entered the restaurant and attempted to arrest Somerville, he ran inside a private bathroom in the back of the restaurant.
An officer chasing Somerville followed him inside. He reported being concerned that Somerville was reaching for a firearm, so the officer had grabbed Somerville's hand and the two struggled until other officers arrived to assist.
After Somerville was taken into custody, officers recovered a semi-automatic handgun with an extended magazine from the floor of the bathroom, according to the complaint.
Officers executed a search warrant at Somerville's residence and found a box of ammunition and a gun cleaning kit. On July 9, investigators confirmed that Finley's fingerprints were present on the magazine of the pistol found in the Infiniti sedan.
Because Somerville had prior felony convictions in Hennepin County and Finley had prior felony convictions in Cook County, Illinois, they are prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition at any time.
