On April 16, 2026, officers responded to a stabbing call near 29XX 17th Avenue South in Minneapolis, Hennepin County, Minnesota. Dispatch notes relayed that two males were fighting and that a black male wearing a cream-colored hoodie had fled the area. Upon arrival, officers located an adult male (“Victim”) lying on his side on a sidewalk. Victim had a stab wound on the left side of his torso. Emergency personnel transported Victim to Hennepin County Medical Center. Due to Victim being intubated and sedated, officers could not take a formal statement.
An officer at the scene spoke with Victim’s girlfriend (“Witness 1”), who reported that she and Victim had been at a restaurant getting food. While at the restaurant, the suspect approached Victim and Witness 1 and asked them for money. The suspect then followed Victim and Witness 1 from the restaurant as they walked on 29th Street. At some point, Victim turned around and told the suspect to stop following them. Eventually, Victim and the suspect began physically fighting each other. Witness 1 saw the suspect with a fixed blade knife in his hand that he used to stab Victim.
The suspect ran north away from the scene. Witness 1 knew the suspect as “Kilo,” and called a friend who fully identified the suspect as Defendant JOVAN DARRELL CHATMAN, born [DOB redacted]. Witness 1 confirmed Defendant’s identity as the suspect through a booking photograph. Witness 2 informed officers that they had been outside their residence and heard sounds of a struggle. Witness 2 saw the suspect and the victim fighting each other. Witness 2 called 911 as the suspect left the scene. Witness 2 described the suspect as a black male, possibly in his 20s, slim building, and wearing a cream hooded sweatshirt.
Witness 2 believed that the suspect was carrying a possible black pocketknife. Witness 3 saw Victim and the suspect mutually fighting on the sidewalk. The suspect wearing a cream- colored sweatshirt pulled out what appeared to be a knife from his waistband and stabbed Victim before running away. Defendant is in custody at the Hennepin County Adult Correctional Facility on a Department of Corrections hold. Given the allegations, the State requests that a warrant issue. BLAKELY NOTICE: The State will seek an aggravated sentence based on the dangerous-offender sentencing provisions in Minn.
Stat. § 609.1095, subds. 2–3 (2024). Defendant has prior felony convictions for violent crimes, including: (1) September 23, 2024 conviction for Third-Degree Assault in court file #62- CR-24-4158; (2) October 6, 2020 conviction for Ineligible Person in Possession of a Firearm in court file #••-CR-20-••••; and (3) May 18, 2018 conviction for Simple Robbery in court file #••-CR-17-•••••.
