Man charged with shooting outside Minneapolis mosque amid drug confrontation

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) – Court records say a 68-year-old Shakopee man under investigation for narcotics is now facing charges for shooting a man outside a Minneapolis mosque after being confronted about selling drugs. 

What happened?

The shooting happened on Aug. 19 around 5:45 p.m. near Masjid An-Nur Mosque, located on the 1700 block of Lyndale Avenue North in Minneapolis. 

A 75-year-old man had just left evening prayer with a friend when they saw what appeared to be a drug deal happening nearby. Charges say the man approached the large SUV and told the driver he couldn’t sell drugs there, and the two started exchanging words. 

The driver started to leave, but the complaint claims he made a U-turn and fired multiple shots at the two men.

When police arrived at the scene, they found the victim with multiple gunshot wounds to his arms and shoulders. He was then transported to the hospital for his injuries. The criminal complaint did not provide an update on the man’s condition. 

How did the police make an arrest?

During the investigation, authorities learned that 68-year-old Yancy Hall, who was later identified as the driver, was being looked into by police as part of a narcotics investigation. 

Charges claim he drove a large white SUV that had been equipped with a tracker from an earlier search warrant. Authorities reviewed the data, which police say placed the vehicle at the shooting location when it occurred before leaving the area. 

Court records say the vehicle was also captured on various surveillance cameras in the area.

What did the suspect say?

While speaking with investigators, police say Hall confessed to shooting the victim. He claims he “sells dope” in that area, and the man had approached him, saying he couldn’t sell drugs there, charges allege.

Hall said that once he started to drive away, he claimed to hear the victim say, “You come back here, I’m gonna kill your motherf—— ass,” so he turned around and started shooting, charges allege. 

What’s next?

Hall was charged with two counts of second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon and an additional count of drive-by shooting toward a person. 

The criminal complaint did not explain what led authorities to start investigating Hall for narcotics or how long he had been under investigation leading up to the shooting. 

He is scheduled to appear in court on Friday afternoon and remains in custody at the Hennepin County Jail.