Man Charged After Allegedly Stabbing Person in Downtown Minneapolis
Hennepin County Jail Booking Photo
MINNEAPOLIS: — A 33-year-old man is facing a felony assault charge after prosecutors allege he stabbed a person in downtown Minneapolis before removing his clothing and being arrested naked near the scene.
Jameel Harps has been charged in Hennepin County District Court with second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon in connection with the Sept. 4 incident.
According to the criminal complaint, Minneapolis police officers were dispatched at approximately 9:56 a.m. to a reported stabbing on the 800 block of LaSalle Avenue. Dispatch information indicated the suspect was removing his clothing and was naked.
When officers arrived, they located Harps naked near the scene and placed him under arrest, the complaint states.
Officers then met with the alleged victim in the lobby of a building on LaSalle Avenue. According to the complaint, the victim had blood on his pants and was holding a bandage to his buttocks.
The victim told police he had been walking along LaSalle Avenue near 8th Street when Harps allegedly approached him, called him names and stabbed him in the left buttock, according to the probable cause statement. The victim was transported to a hospital.
Police reported finding clothing belonging to Harps on the sidewalk along with a pocket knife.
The complaint also states that Harps had been sentenced on a felony threats of violence charge one day earlier, on Sept. 3.
Harps remains in custody, according to the complaint.
Second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon is a felony under Minnesota law. The complaint lists a maximum potential sentence of seven years in prison and/or a fine and identifies a minimum sentence of one year and one day under the statute cited by prosecutors.
The allegations contained in the criminal complaint are accusations. Harps is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.