On or about February 11, 2023, at approximately 12:17 A.M., a trooper stopped a speeding motor vehicle on westbound Interstate 94 near Dowling Avenue in the City of Minneapolis, Hennepin County, Minnesota. When the trooper approached the vehicle, he noticed that the driver appeared impaired and there were suspected marijuana crumbs in the center console. The trooper also observed two other men in the vehicle, one seated in the front passenger's seat and another seated on the backseat directly behind the driver.
Although the driver admitted smoking marijuana prior to driving, he assured the trooper there was no marijuana in the vehicle and gave him permission to conduct a search. The trooper asked all the occupants to exit the vehicle as he searched the interior cabin. Underneath a jacket on the backseat directly adjacent to where the rear passenger had been seated, the trooper recovered an open bottle of Hennessy and a loaded and operable Taurus nine-millimeter pistol. Although the backseat passenger told troopers his name was Andre Malachi McCarthy [DOB REDACTED], a fingerprint scan later revealed his true identity is Andy Morato DIYOKA [DOB REDACTED], Defendant hereinafter, and that he had an active warrant.
Troopers noticed Defendant smelled of alcohol and he explained he consumed a few drinks containing Hennessy. After Defendant took a preliminary breath test that reported his blood alcohol concentration ("BAC") was.074, he was placed under arrest and the troopers administered the Implied Consent Firearm Advisory. Defendant indicated he understood the advisory, and at 2:34 A.M., he voluntarily submitted to a breath test on a DataMaster machine that reported his BAC was.09. Analysis of the pistol by the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension identified a mixture of DNA from five individuals.
A forensic scientist compared the DNA mixture recovered from the pistol with Defendant's DNA and determined it was highly likely Defendant was a contributor to the mixture from the firearm.
