A Savage man fired multiple gunshots at two vehicles during a rush hour confrontation on Interstate 35E in Eagan, striking both cars and sending one driver scrambling for safety, according to charges.
Antonio Carlos Grajeda Jr., 20, faces three counts of second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon. The charges were filed Wednesday, August 19 in Dakota County District Court.
According to the complaint, officers responded at about 5:16 p.m. on July 11 to a report of gunfire on northbound Interstate 35E near Deerwood Drive. Officers found a vehicle on the shoulder driven by the victim, who told police she saw a white pickup truck swerving through traffic behind a grey sedan. The sedan repeatedly blocked the pickup from passing, nearly causing a collision.
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Near Diffley Road, the pickup managed to pass the sedan and the victim heard four to five gunshots. She swerved to escape but heard glass shatter and pulled over, later discovering her vehicle had been hit by a projectile.
Officers observed a dent in the hood and impact damage to the windshield of the victim’s vehicle. They determined the projectile came from in front of her car and recovered a spent 9mm shell casing on the left shoulder of the interstate near Diffley Road.
A short time later, officers found a second vehicle at a nearby business, a grey sedan with bullet damage. The sedan was occupied by two people. The driver told officers he was northbound on Interstate 35E when a white pickup truck approached from behind and began “messing with him.” After the pickup passed on the passenger side, the driver made a gesture at the pickup’s driver and immediately heard gunfire.
The passenger, who had been sleeping, woke up to the sound of shots. Officers impounded the sedan and found four suspected bullet defects, including one that passed through the engine compartment and another in the passenger door, where they recovered a projectile and a copper jacket.
Investigators reviewed traffic camera footage and identified a white Ford F150 registered to Antonio Carlos Grajeda Jr. as the suspect vehicle. Video showed the truck’s rear window was intact before the shooting but broken afterward. Cell phone location data placed Grajeda near Interstate 35E and Diffley Road at the time of the shooting, then traveling to a nearby apartment complex.
Surveillance video from the apartment complex showed Grajeda and four others clearing glass and debris from the truck bed, covering the rear window with plastic and taping over bullet holes in the tailgate. Grajeda also moved several containers into another vehicle.
On July 29, officers executed a search warrant at Grajeda’s residence, seizing his cell phone, keys to the Ford F150 and a locked gun safe. Inside the safe, they found empty magazines for a .40 caliber and a 9mm handgun, along with the truck’s title. The Ford F150 and any 9mm handguns were not located.
Two days later, officers searched a storage unit rented by Grajeda and found a truck tailgate matching the Ford F150, with two bullet holes consistent with projectiles exiting the passenger cabin. Surveillance video showed Grajeda and another person placing the tailgate in the unit on July 14. Grajeda’s access code was used to enter the facility on July 14 and July 24.
A court date has not yet been set.
About This Charge
Minnesota classifies assault by degree under § 609.221 (first), § 609.222 (second), § 609.223 (third), § 609.2231 (fourth) and § 609.224 (fifth). First-degree assault, alleging great bodily harm, carries up to 20 years in prison. The lower degrees range from gross-misdemeanor up to 10-year felony exposure depending on weapon use and harm.
Related MN CRIME Coverage
Prior Lake Man Charged After Shots Fired at Cars in Burnsville • Burnsville Man Charged After Shots Fired on I-35W • VIDEO: 1 Hurt in 5-Vehicle Crash on I-35W in Burnsville
Jurisdictional Context
Dakota County, immediately south of Saint Paul, is Minnesota’s third-largest county by population. The Dakota County Attorney’s Office prosecutes felonies through the First Judicial District; cases are heard at the Dakota County Judicial Center in Hastings.
