2 teens, Brooklyn Park man charged with murder in ex-girlfriend’s killing

A Brooklyn Park man is charged with the murder of his ex-girlfriend after he allegedly gave two teenagers a gun and told them to break into her apartment and shoot her new boyfriend.

Police in Brooklyn Park were called to an apartment in the 6300 block of Zane Avenue North just after 2:30 a.m. Tuesday. There, officers found the door to the apartment had been broken in and a woman inside had been shot. Despite their attempts to provide aid, the woman, identified as 23-year-old Zaria Rashun McKeever, was pronounced dead.

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Court documents state that McKeever’s boyfriend was the one who called police and reported that two males in black hoodies had kicked in the apartment door. He was in the bathroom at the time but was able to jump out of a bedroom window to safety and call 911.

He told police that McKeever had been having problems with her ex-boyfriend and child’s father, 22-year-old Erick Dewaun Haynes, adding that McKeever had mentioned Haynes was harassing her by phone and in person for weeks and had followed her in her car earlier the day before.

A criminal complaint states video footage from the apartment confirmed the boyfriend’s story and also showed a vehicle associated with Haynes at the apartment several times in the days before the shooting. Additionally, it caught two males fleeing from the complex just moments after the shooting.

With the help of a K9 unit, officers found a gun that matched the discharged cartridge casings in McKeever’s apartment hidden in the wheel well of a Dodge Charger that was parked nearby.

According to court documents, Haynes told police he was mad at McKeever over their relationship ending and her having a new boyfriend. He also admitted to going to her apartment with two teens — a 15-year-old and a 17-year-old — to beat up her new boyfriend and giving the teens a gun. However, Haynes said nobody answered when he was there and he waited in the car while the two teens planned to kick in the door.

The teens implicated Haynes in the incident, confirming that Haynes had given them the gun and told them to shoot McKeever’s boyfriend. Court documents state that the teens claimed McKeever had a knife when they kicked in the door and the 15-year-old fired multiple shots at McKeever before they ran away to meet up with Haynes. The 17-year-old was shot in the leg and Haynes took him to get medical attention.

Haynes is now charged with both intentional and unintentional second-degree murder in McKeever’s killing. The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office confirmed it has juvenile petitions out for the two teens as well, and prosecutors intend to file a motion to move their cases to adult court.

Haynes is scheduled to make his first court appearance on Monday afternoon.

If convicted, second-degree murder carries a penalty of up to 40 years in jail.