2 Mpls. men charged in Hudson shooting that wounded 3

Two Minneapolis men believed to be members of a Somali gang were charged Tuesday in a shooting outside a Hudson, Wis., liquor store over the weekend that left three Twin Cities people wounded.

Charged in St. Croix County District Court were Guled B. Abdi, 22, and Ahmed F. Hirsi, 26. Both were charged with many felony counts, including attempted first-degree homicide, first-degree reckless injury and first-degree reckless endangering safety.

Both remain held in the Hennepin County jail pending transfer to authorities in Wisconsin.

The shooting, which police say in court records involved members of the Somali Outlaws and a rival gang, occurred about 9:20 a.m. Sunday in the parking lot of Spirit Seller Liquors. Those involved arrived at the Hudson store in two vehicles — a sport-utility vehicle and a Cadillac — registered in Minnesota, where liquor stores are closed on Sundays.

Wounded were Fartun I. Aidid, 28, of Hopkins, who remained in critical condition Tuesday at Regions Hospital in St. Paul. Abdirahman A. Hersi, 23, of Minneapolis, and Mohamed D. Hussein, 21, of Savage, were treated for their wounds and released.

Police have said that the victims, who say that they did not know the shooting suspects, have provided little information to investigators as to what started the confrontation.

Several witnesses said they saw people talking in the parking lot in the moments before the shootings, then heard shots fired outside the liquor store, which opened at 9 a.m.

Hudson Police Chief Marty Jensen said two of those wounded walked into the liquor store, where emergency responders found them. The third victim, a woman, stayed in the SUV, Jensen said. Three others who were with the woman were unharmed, he said.

According to a criminal complaint filed Tuesday, Hersi, one of the three who were wounded, told police that someone in the SUV and someone in a tan or gray Cadillac with tinted windows had exchanged words earlier that morning at a nearby gas station.

Later, while both vehicles were outside the liquor store, Hussein, who had been a passenger in the SUV, got into the Cadillac.

Not long after, a passenger in the Cadillac started calling Aidid by a derogatory name. Aidid returned the insult, Hersi said. After Hussein got out of the Cadillac and started walking back to the SUV, the front-seat passenger in the Cadillac began firing with a handgun.

Within seconds, the Cadillac sped off. An Eagan officer spotted it on Interstate 494 a little more than an hour after the shooting and followed it to a hotel near the Mall of America, radioing Bloomington police.

Officers arrested Abdi and Hirsi as they walked toward the Hampton Inn near the mall, Hudson police said.

Hirsi's criminal history in Minnesota includes three convictions for theft.

Abdi's brushes with the law have involved mostly traffic violations, with many convictions for various offenses since 2009. He also has a marijuana possession conviction on his record.

Paul Walsh • 612-673-4482