Maple Grove Man Admits to Shooting Teenage Girl in Brooklyn Park
A Maple Grove man has admitted in court to fatally shooting a 17-year-old girl in Brooklyn Park last July.
Melchizedek Kpaan, 25, pleaded guilty to manslaughter and gun possession in Hennepin County District Court. Prosecutors had previously charged him with second-degree murder for the fatal shooting of Zoe Kpanlin.
According to the criminal complaint:
Kpaan and Kpanlin agreed to meet in a parking lot near the U-Haul on 70th Avenue and Lakeland Avenue North. Surveillance footage shows Kpaan holding a backpack, which he threw at Kpanlin while brandishing a handgun.
Kpaan then fired the handgun and Kpanlin doubles over attempting to run away with the backpack, the surveillance video showed.
The 17-year-old ran around the corner of the building, where police later found her unconscious. She later died in the hospital.
According to Kpanlin’s family, her death came just days before she would have turned 18.
Kpaan ran away from the scene of the shooting and threw his sweater in a dumpster. It was later recovered by investigators.
He was arrested by law enforcement officials in Ohio and extradited to Minnesota.
Court records show he entered a guilty plea on Feb. 27.
His sentencing hearing is scheduled for March 26.
