Man Charged After Saint Paul Crash Left Woman Seriously Hurt

Oct 18

A Minneapolis man is accused of fleeing the scene of a high-speed crash that seriously injured a woman in Saint Paul earlier this year.

According to a criminal complaint, 40-year-old Elmi Abdulaziz Elmi is charged with two counts of criminal vehicular operation.

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One count alleges he caused great bodily harm through gross negligence and the other for leaving the scene of the collision. He was charged via warrant.

Police say the crash happened around 5:30 a.m. on April 6 at the intersection of Marshall Avenue and Cleveland Avenue North. Surveillance video captured a silver 2025 GMC Acadia traveling west on Marshall at high speed, running a red light, and hitting a blue 2010 Honda Civic traveling north on Cleveland. The Acadia caught fire after the impact. Firefighters responded and extinguished the blaze.

Officers found the Civic’s driver suffering severe injuries to the right side of her body. Her medical records showed she suffered multiple fractures, blood loss, and a vertebral artery dissection that led to an ischemic stroke.

Witnesses told police they saw a man—later identified as Elmi—get out of the Acadia, check the scene briefly, grab a bag from the vehicle, and run away north between homes on Marshall Avenue. Investigators later found a black wallet on the Acadia’s driver’s seat containing Elmi’s driver’s license, passport card, and bank cards. The SUV was rented in his name through Sixt Rental.

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Metro Transit footage showed the intersection’s traffic lights were functioning normally at the time and that the Honda’s headlights were on, contradicting Elmi’s later claims.

Investigators interviewed Elmi on April 24 with his attorney present. He admitted to driving the rented Acadia and said no one else was in the vehicle. He claimed he thought the lights at the intersection might have been off and said he was injured in the crash, calling his brother afterward to summon an Uber. Elmi told police he spoke with the other driver, who said she was okay, and that he waited 20 to 30 minutes before leaving for his brother’s home in Plymouth and later going to the hospital. He acknowledged not calling 911 and said he failed to exchange information because he was “not in the right mindset.”

A police sergeant who assisted with the crash investigation noted there was no record of Elmi contacting emergency services and that video showed him walking away from the crash without visible injury.

Each charge carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $10,000 fine.

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