MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- Police from Minneapolis and Brooklyn Center met with members of the local Somali community to plead for help in solving four slayings of Somali men since December in the two cities.
The most recent murder was of Mohamed Jama. The Minneapolis man died from a gunshot wound to the head early Wednesday outside a Brooklyn Center hotel.
Jama's brother and a friend were shot to death on December 1 in Minneapolis. An 18-year-old Somali man was killed in April in the Cedar-Riverside area. There have been no charges in any of the killings.
"I was begging them to have their people come forward," Brooklyn Center police Cmdr. St Robinson told the Star Tribune. "Unless they step up, the cycle will continue and there will be more people dying in their community. It's no different than other communities."
Robinson and Minneapolis Lt. Amelia Huffman, head of the homicide unit, met Friday night with about 100 Somalis in the Cedar-Riverside area of Minneapolis.
ADVERTISEMENT
Omar Jamal, executive director of the Somali Justice Advocacy Center, encouraged his fellow Somalis to pass tips to police. He said word in the Somali community is that Jama's friends think they know who shot him and may try to kill that person.
"It is almost like open warfare right now among the Somali minors and youth," Jamal said. "We are deeply troubled."
Some Somalis at the meeting said they fear talking to police because of immigration status. "I said we don't ask and don't care," Robinson said. "We want to help stop the violence in your community and the greater community, that includes Brooklyn Center."
Saeed Fahia, executive director of the Confederation of Somali Community in Minnesota, said some Somalis are reluctant to cooperate with police officers because they come from a country where police are usually corrupt and abusive. He said some Somalis in the Twin Cities say police treat them as suspects when they've come forward with information.
------
Information from: Star Tribune, http://www.startribune.com
