A 28-year-old Minneapolis man fired a gun at a Jeep occupied by four people in ski masks in a south Minneapolis alley, according to charges.
Ananias Cortez Williams Jr., 28, of Minneapolis, faces three felony charges: second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon, aiding and abetting second-degree riot while armed with a dangerous weapon and possession of a firearm or ammunition by a person convicted of a crime of violence.
According to the complaint, Minneapolis police responded to reports of shots fired around 3:25 a.m. on July 13, 2026, near the 2800 block of Colfax Avenue South. Officers found numerous spent cartridge casings in the alley, several vehicles damaged by gunfire and a shattered window in a nearby residence.
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Security video captured a white Jeep driving through the alley and returning. At that point, what appeared to be four males standing in a parking lot — one of them later identified as Williams — began firing at the Jeep, the complaint says. Surveillance footage showed Williams with a group of four other males, all appearing to have firearms, circling the area and looking for the Jeep before the gunfire erupted.
In a post-Miranda interview, Williams admitted to driving a Ford Explorer to the scene and identified himself in surveillance photos. He told investigators he was in the area because a friend was shooting a video at an Airbnb, and said the Jeep with four males in ski masks was circling them. Williams claimed the Jeep occupants shot first, but surveillance video showed him and four other males appearing to look for the Jeep rather than leaving when it first arrived.
Williams stated he was shooting a Glock 19. The complaint notes he said he got the gun from another person. Investigators obtained a search warrant for Williams’s cell phone records, which placed him in the vicinity of the shooting at the time it occurred.
Some of the recovered cartridge casings matched evidence from a pending second-degree assault case in which Williams is charged, as well as two other open shooting cases. Court records show Williams was previously convicted of second-degree assault in September 2022 and is prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition. The charges were filed Monday, August 24, and a judge set bail at $200,000.
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 misdemeanor up to 10-year felony exposure depending on weapon use and harm.
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Jurisdictional Context
Hennepin County is Minnesota’s most populous jurisdiction. The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office handles felony prosecutions across Minneapolis and 45 surrounding cities; the Fourth Judicial District presides over felony arraignments and trials at the Hennepin County Government Center in downtown Minneapolis.
