Man charged in drive-by shooting that killed 18-year-old in south Minneapolis
Amariaun Thornton (Credit: Hennepin County Sheriff's Office)
A man accused of killing a teen last month in a drive-by shooting has been arrested and charged with murder, court records show.
Amariaun Antonio Thomas Thornton, 21, of Oakdale faces two counts each of second-degree murder, attempted second-degree murder and drive-by shooting.
Prosecutors allege Thornton shot at three people while driving past the intersection of 27th Street and Nicollet Avenue around 8 p.m. on July 7.
Surveillance video shows a GMC Acadia approach the victims before the driver fires a pistol at them. One of the bullets appears to ricochet off the pavement, striking 18-year-old Javon Stevenson in the chest. Stevenson died at the hospital about an hour and a half later.
Police identified the vehicle from the surveillance footage as Thornton’s. Officers also recovered a 9 mm ghost gun — a firearm that is harder to trace because it is unregistered and assembled by the owner — that matched with the cartridge casings found at the scene.
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On Wednesday, Minneapolis police arrested Thornton after he ran away from the scene of a shots-fired report on the 2900 block of Russell Avenue South. He remained in custody at the Hennepin County Jail as of Friday evening.
Thornton is set to make his first court appearance on Monday.