Brooklyn Center Man Charged in Two Violent Robberies

A Brooklyn Center man is charged in two violent robberies that have made national news and led to concerns to about crime in downtown Minneapolis.

Adrian Cooper is one of eighteen people charged, according to Hennepin County prosecutors. The suspects charged range in age from 15 to 27 years old. Cooper, who is 25, was the only person charged in both of the crimes, which included an attack on a man near Target Field.

Minneapolis Police received surveillance video of the Target Field incident, which occurred the morning of Aug. 3. The video showed about a dozen people trying to take a man’s cell phone and viciously beating him and kicking him as they also ripped off his shoes and pants as they went through his pockets. By the end, the victim was lying on the ground where he was jumped on, hit with planting pots and run over by a bicycle, authorities said. The victim and the suspects were gone before police arrived.

The second incident occurred in the early morning of Aug. 17 near Fifth Street and Hennepin Avenue. According to the complaint, the victim told police we was with friends in a downtown bar but after he left, he was standing on the corner using his phone when a group surrounded him and tried to take his wallet.

The assailants kicked and punched him until he was unconscious. Bystanders came to his assistance. The victim was later diagnosed with a concussion. The complaint says that the suspects charged stole the man’s iPhone, wallet, keys and $100 in cash. The man was later notified by his bank that one of the suspects used his debit card to withdraw $220 from an ATM, the complaint states.

Brooklyn Center