Man charged with murder in crime spree that started in Minneapolis, ended in western Minnesota
KANDIYOHI COUNTY, Minn. — A man accused of killing one person and injuring another while leading police on a high-speed chase in western Minnesota following a domestic violence-related standoff in Minneapolis was charged Thursday morning.
Ameer Matariyeh, of Minneapolis, was charged in Kandiyohi County with second-degree murder, attempted second-degree murder, assault and fleeing a peace officer.
The charges filed Thursday describe the chase and fatal shooting, but do not recount the apartment standoff in the Lyn-Lake neighborhood, where police say he opened fire from a balcony at his ex-girlfriend — the mother of his child — and her current boyfriend. Neither of them were hurt, police said Tuesday.
Pursuit, shooting at rural farm
According to the criminal complaint, Kandiyohi County deputies learned of a stolen Chevy Malibu traveling west on Highway 7 around 1:53 p.m. on Tuesday. Seven minutes later, they learned that the Chevy was at a home along the highway in the Lake Lillian area, and the suspect — identified as Matariyeh — was out on the front lawn of the property.
At 2:02 p.m., deputies received a 911 call from the residence saying a man had been shot in the chest. His wife, who was at home with him during the shooting, told police that her husband had been outside and she heard a pop.
When she looked out the window, she saw her husband and a person she did not know yelling at each other, documents say. The complaint says that her husband then came into the house and told her to get his gun, as he had been shot. She said she could see he was bleeding, and heard another couple of pops.
Her husband told her that the man said he was going to shoot someone if he couldn't talk to his daughter, the complaint says. When she looked out the window again, she saw the man getting back into his car. She told police she heard about six or seven gunshots, the complaint states.
Second pursuit, fatal shooting
Charges say that the Chevy Malibu was seen going west on Highway 7 again at 2:04 p.m. The complaint describes officers' attempts to disable the vehicle, which was at times traveling 130 mph.
Matariyeh turned north on County Road 7 near Prinsburg and then eventually turned east on Highway 23 towards Willmar, the complaint says. While on Highway 23, deputies learned that Minneapolis police negotiators were on the phone with him, and Matariyeh said he was going to attempt suicide by cop.
Deputies contacted OnStar to remotely disable the vehicle around 2:25 p.m. Matariyeh then got out of the car and approached a small green pickup truck that was driving on the road.
An officer saw Matariyeh holding a gun and open the driver's side door of the pickup, charges say. Then the officer saw him hold the gun and recoil backwards as if he fired a bullet.
The victim of the attempted carjacking was later identified as 55-year-old Jerome Skluzacek of New London. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Arrest
Charging documents say that after Matariyeh shot and killed Skluzacek, he ran across the highway into the median. He then came back towards the road and raised his hands over his head.
He was speaking to Minneapolis negotiators on his cell phone, documents say, and he threw his gun into the ditch. Deputies gave him loud, verbal commands not to move, and he was taken into custody.
While in the back of the squad car, Matariyeh told officers that he was throwing his life away because he had been cheated on, documents say.
"This was a very taxing situation, and I know it's weighing especially heavy on the crisis negotiators that were on the phone with this individual," Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara said on Tuesday afternoon. "I know our officers did absolutely everything they could, but it appears clear that this person was homicidal and just bent on committing violence."
"Move it out, or I'm going to kill you"
The white Chevy Malibu belonged to Veronica Pompa, of Hutchinson. She and her husband were on their way to Minneapolis when they stopped at a BP gas station about 50 minutes west of the city.
Pompa went inside, but her husband was in the car when a man with a gun knocked on the door and told him to get out, she told WCCO.
"The guy said 'move it out, or I'm going to kill you,'" Pompa said.
She alerted police that the car had OnStar, which the officers used to remotely deactivate the car.
"I'm not feeling good, because, for the people killed. Because my car was used to kill other people. I don't care as much about my car, my stuff," Pompa said.
Her cell phone and credit card, as well as her ID were in the car at the time. Pompa said police told her that it could take weeks or months to get her belongings back. It could take years for the car to be returned, Pompa said.
WCCO reached out to investigators for comment, but did not hear back.
Note: The above video first aired on Oct. 22, 2024 before charges were filed.
For anonymous, confidential help, people can call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 or 1-800-787-3224.
If you or someone you know is in emotional distress, get help from the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by calling or texting 988. Trained crisis counselors are available 24 hours a day to talk about anything.In addition, help is available from the National Alliance on Mental Illness, or NAMI. Call the NAMI Helpline at 800-950-6264 or text "HelpLine" to 62640. There are more than 600 local NAMI organizations and affiliates across the country, many of which offer free support and education programs.
