All of the conduct described herein occurred within the County of St. Louis, State of Minnesota, unless otherwise noted. On June 15, 2026, at approximately 3:40 P.M., officers with the Duluth Police Department were dispatched to the Round Up Bar at [ADDRESS REDACTED] in Duluth, St. Louis County, Minnesota, on the report of two men threatening people with machetes. The bartender, a male born in 1990, hereinafter referred to as Bartender Victim [NAME REDACTED] had been working that day and two men who had been in the bar had become intoxicated and aggressive so he had to cut them off and eject them from the bar.
The men were later identified as JOSEPH JAMES FOHRENKAM, [DOB REDACTED], hereinafter referred to as Defendant Fohrenkam, and NICHOLAS JOSEPH AMMESMAKI, [DOB REDACTED], hereinafter referred to as Defendant Ammesmaki. When Bartender Victim ejected the co-defendants from the bar for trying to fight people, the co-defendants left and went outside to a black pickup truck. The co-defendants then came back with machetes. The front door of the bar was open and the co-defendants stood in the doorway pointing machetes at people and swinging them.
Bartender Victim felt threatened by their actions. Another male born in 1975, hereinafter referred to as Patron Victim described how the co-defendants came out hollering racial slurs. Patron Victim told the co-defendants to calm down with their language. A confrontation occurred at the door and the co-defendants left and came back with the machetes. Patron Victim described Defendant Ammesmaki as wearing a black tee-shirt and holding a shorter machete, while Defendant Fohrenkam was wearing a white tee-shirt and had a longer machete.
Patron Victim stood in the doorway trying to stop the co-defendants from coming in and trying to de-escalate the situation. Patron Victim [NAME REDACTED] only an arms-length away from the co-defendants and their machetes. The co-defendants continued swinging the blades and using racial slurs. When officers arrived, other patrons from the bar were pointing at the co-defendants leaving out the front door of the bar. Defendant Fohrenkam went into the passenger seat of the black Dodge Ram pickup truck parked on the west side of the bar in the bar’s parking lot.
Defendant Ammesmaki was walking eastbound down the sidewalk away from the bar. Officer Herbst ordered Defendant Ammesmaki to stop and identify himself as police. Defendant Ammesmaki continued to walk away from the bar and as he turned a corner, began sprinting away. Officers were able to catch Defendant Ammesmaki and safely take him into custody. Officers approached the Dodge pickup truck and found Defendant Fohrenkam appearing to be asleep or passed out on the passenger’s side of the truck. Officers detained Defendant Fohrenkam who spit on Sergeant A. Graves’ face.
