A Rochester man has admitted to fatally shooting the driver of a car while they were riding in it late one night last summer.

Abdulkadir Omar Mohamed, 31, pleaded guilty last week in Olmsted County District Court to second-degree manslaughter. Charges of second-degree murder, reckless discharge of a gun and illegal firearms possession were dismissed.

The plea agreement calls for Mohamed to receive a sentence of no more than 5â…” years, with two-thirds of that to be served in prison, for killing Abdullahi Omar Sheikh, 31, of Rochester, on Aug. 10 at an intersection northwest of the Mayo Clinic. Mohamed remains jailed ahead of sentencing in February.

Police said in the days after the shooting that it was likely unintentional and probably caused by the gun being carelessly handled inside the moving car.

At the Rochester intersection about 2:20 a.m., an ambulance happened upon the scene and the crew called police about what they thought was no more than a vehicle crash. The crew saw two men outside the disabled car in an argument, and the men then dragged a wounded Sheikh into the street.

One of the men arguing ran from the scene, while Mohamed remained. The man who fled was later identified, but not charged.

Paul Walsh • 612-673-4482