Derrick John Thompson, son of former Minnesota state representative John Thompson, has been detained in connection with a fatal Friday night crash that took the lives of five young ladies, according to the Minneapolis Police Department.
On Monday afternoon, Thompson, now 27, was arrested on suspicion of murder based on credible evidence. Mary Moriarty, the Hennepin County Attorney, has said she is now analyzing the matter before deciding whether or not to file charges.
According to public records, Thompson was convicted of a felony in connection with a hit-and-run that left a woman injured in Montecito in 2018. Even though he was given an eight-year term in 2020, he was just freed from jail.
In 2017, authorities in Minnesota arrested and convicted Thomspon for running from an officer, according to his driving record. His license was suspended at some point, but official records show it was restored on June 7—less than two weeks before the fatal crash on Friday.
The tweet below verifies the news:
Minneapolis police confirm Derrick John Thompson, son of former state Rep. John Thompson, has been arrested in connection with a high-speed crash Friday night that killed five young women. https://t.co/nQwFYOj72G
— KSTP (@KSTP) June 19, 2023
The Thompson family was repeatedly reached out to by 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS for comment. No word back from them yet. According to their investigation, a car carrying five young women was struck at the intersection of Lake Street and Second Avenue South at around 10:15 p.m. on Friday by a driver who had disregarded a red light.
After the collision, Thompson allegedly jumped out of the car and fled away, but a police officer located and apprehended him. After being hospitalized since Friday night, Thompson has recovered sufficiently to be taken into prison.
Salma Abdikadir, Siham Adam, Sabiriin Ali, Sahra Gesaade, and Sagal Hersi were all young women (about 17–20 years old) when they were killed. They were laid to rest at Burnsville’s Garden of Eden Cemetery on a Monday afternoon.
The following is a list of articles and links to those articles that you might find interesting:
- Minnesota Tattoo Parlor Owner Indicted for Trading Human Body Parts
- 51 Shot and 9 Died in Citywide Weekend Gun Violence
Release of Crash Video Under Investigation
Moriarty and Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara have both spoken out after a video of the crash taken from a Metro Transit surveillance camera was posted online. MPD and Metro Transit police are conducting an internal probe, and O’Hara claimed he had no idea who leaked the footage.
“I will also review and consider policy changes to limit how video of evidentiary valuie may be received from an outside agency by members of the MPD,” O’Hara said in a statement.
In a second statement, Moriarty indicated that the release of the video would not influence how her agency decided to proceed with charges.
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