By The Independent (World News) | Created at 2024-10-26 21:15:23 | Updated at 2024-10-26 23:24:04
2 hours ago
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A man in Minneapolis has been charged with attempted murder after he allegedly shot his neighbor for pruning a tree he believed was on his property, according to court documents.
David Moturi said he was shot by his neighbor, John Sawchak, while he was pruning a tree outside of his home on Wednesday afternoon, CBS News reports. His wife told the broadcaster that she found her husband slumped over in the fetal position on the ground when she returned home from work.
Moturi was taken to Hennepin Healthcare for treatment. Doctors found a bullet wound in the back of his neck, and he is currently in stable condition.
His wife said that Sawchak warned Moturi he would kill him if he touched the tree.
"Touch my tree again and I'll kill you," he allegedly told Moturi.
Moturi's wife said it wasn't the first time they had to contact police about their neighbor.
According to court documents, the Moturis have made 19 police reports involving Sawchak. Their complaints range from alleged vandalism to assault threats. In one complaint, the Moturis claim that he left human feces in their mailbox, and in another he allegedly hurled insults and slurs at the couple. That incident was reportedly caught on surveillance footage.
Sawchak has been charged with second-degree attempted murder, first-degree assault with the intent to inflict great bodily harm, stalking, and harassment.
According to police records, Sawchak has not been arrested and is currently wanted on three active warrants stemming from other incidents involving threats and violent acts against people in his neighborhood, including the Moturis.
It's unclear why Sawchak had to allegedly nearly kill someone before police moved to take him into custody. According to Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara, he has actively evaded prior attempts to contact or arrest him.
"We're not going to go in and bust his door down with guns blazing and get into a deadly force situation," he said during a press conference on Friday.
He said he'd hoped officers could take him into custody outside of his home, but lamented that he was a "recluse."
"We wanted to arrest the suspect where he would be least likely to have access to firearms. That is outside the residence," O'Hara said. "Unfortunately, in this case, this suspect is a recluse and does not often come out of the house."
The police chief also suggested that Moturi was somewhat to blame for escalating the incident, to which Moturi claimed O'Hara is "an effing liar."
The Minneapolis City Council was not content with the police department's feet dragging and sent a letter to O'Hara urging immediate action. O'Hara reportedly never responded to an email one council member sent asking for an explanation.
"MPD's failure to act has left Mr. Moturi asking, 'Am I not human like you?'" the City Council asked in its question. "We echo Mr. Moturi's heartbreaking question about why MPD did not protect this Black resident from a clear and serious threat, and why they continue to do so by failing to cooperate with the County Attorney's Office and failing to arrest the suspect."
