35-year-old accused of shooting homeless man in the face

A 35-year-old from St. Paul is accused of shooting a homeless man in the face on Monday.

Mohamud Hillow Bulle faces one count of attempted second-degree murder.

According to a criminal complaint, St. Paul officers were called to the 1400 block of Seventh Street East on a report of a shooting around 4:15 a.m. on Monday. There, they found a man with a bullet hole to the left side of his chin and another on his right cheek.

The victim wasn’t able to speak but indicated that a man grabbed him and put an arm around his head, put a gun under his chin, and shot him, court documents state.

A witness told police that a man named Mohamud, later identified as Bulle, had previously pulled a gun from his waistband and threatened to shoot the victim.

At the hospital, the victim told police that Bulle had confronted him outside an apartment building and accused him of touching the door handle to his apartment. The victim added that Bulle waved a gun at him and said, “I will blow your head off — don’t move,” and the victim ran, but Bulle caught him and shot him.

According to court documents, the victim and Bulle had each other’s numbers due to drinking together in the past. The victim’s phone showed he had several missed calls from Bulle from Monday morning. Bulle also reportedly sent a voicemail to the victim’s girlfriend threatening someone over money being owed.

Investigators executed a search warrant on Bulle’s apartment and arrested him. Officers found a handgun hidden in the trash can.

In an interview, Bulle said he saw someone manipulating his door handle and that he had seen two people who he thought were suspicious.

Bulle said he had shared food and cigarettes with the victim because he knew he was homeless.

Bulle also later claimed he caught the victim and another man listening at his door and confronted them. The victim left the building and Bulle claimed they spoke on the phone. Bulle claimed he punched the victim but denied shooting him. He also denied owning guns and couldn’t explain how one was found in his apartment.