A 21-year-old man who killed another man with a single punch to the head outside a south Minneapolis gas station is being held in lieu of $2 million bail and is charged with first-degree manslaughter.
Tristan A. Keys, of Minneapolis, punched Lamar Wilson, 53, of Apple Valley, on April 29 at the Stop N Shop near W. 35th Street and 1st Avenue S., according to the criminal complaint. Wilson was targeted because he was accused of being a snitch, the complaint read.
Wilson went down "like a rag doll," said one of three people who were with Wilson that night, according to the complaint. He died the next day at Hennepin County Medical Center from what the medical examiner determined was a brain injury.
Keys was arrested June 19 and acknowledged to police that he was the scene but denied assaulting or confronting anyone, the complaint added.
Authorities explained that the unusually high bail for a manslaughter charge was necessary because "all witnesses are in fear for their safety," according to the complaint. The witnesses' names were not included in the complaint.
According to the complaint:
Wilson and the three witnesses arrived in Wilson's van at the Stop N Shop. While parked, Keys pulled up in an SUV and words were exchanged. Wilson told one of his passengers that Keys was accusing him of being a snitch. The charging document did not elaborate on how the accusation came about.
Moments later, Keys punched Wilson while the two were out of their vehicles.
