MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – Two more men and a juvenile have been charged in connection with a shooting at a Woodbury graduation party on Saturday that left 14-year-old Demaris Ekdahl dead.
Enrique Lucio Davila, 23, Jaden Lavan Townsend, 19, and a 17-year-old boy have been charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder and four counts of aiding and abetting assault. The 17-year-old was charged by juvenile petition. Ekdahl’s stepfather, Keith Dawson, was charged in relation to the shooting on Monday.
According to complaint documents, the shooting happened on the 6100 block of Edgewood Road, where Ekdahl and four others had gone to attend the party.
When they were leaving, Davila allegedly pulled a gun on one of the people in the group and told them “don’t try anything.” The person noted that the 17-year-old also had a gun.
Credit: Dakota County Jail
The group then called Dawson, who told them they needed to go back to the party so the trio would stop messing with them.
Dawson led them in his white Chevy Tahoe, and the group followed in their own car. Dawson then allegedly drove past the Davila, Townsend, and the 17-year-old, who were standing next to a black SUV, and fired his gun.
A witness said Dawson fired roughly three to four rounds, while the trio shot back 15 to 20 rounds.
Officers later found the Tahoe on Century Avenue, near the shooting. The car refused to pull over until it reached Regions Hospital. Ekdahl was in the back middle seat with significant injuries, and he was pronounced dead at 11:12 p.m.
When examining the car, officers found a bullet had traveled from the back of the car through the trunk and back seat cushion to where Ekdahl was sitting. The medical examiner said he died of a gunshot wound to his right torso, which had perforated his lung, heart and aorta.
Officers went to the 17-year-old’s house and found a bag that contained two 9mm handguns with extended 30 round magazines.
The complaint says all three are out of custody and their whereabouts are unknown.
A full examination of the guns and cars is forthcoming from the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension.