Teen Charged in Dinkytown Shooting That Left Man Critically Wounded

Sep 14

A Moorhead teen has been charged in a Minneapolis shooting that left a man critically wounded and put others in danger inside a Dinkytown store late last month.

According to a criminal complaint, 18-year-old Valentino John Gaudalupe Salinas-Avery faces one count of second-degree attempted murder with intent, along with three counts of second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon.

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Prosecutors say he fired repeatedly at a man outside the Water Wave TV store on the 1500 block of Como Avenue Southeast on Aug. 31, striking him multiple times while also pointing the gun at three other people inside.

Minneapolis officers were dispatched just after 7 p.m. and found the victim bleeding in the kitchen of a neighboring business. He had wounds to his back and both legs and was rushed to the hospital after officers applied tourniquets. Investigators collected eleven spent 9mm casings at the scene, as well as a broken magazine and scattered bullets on the sidewalk.

Video reviewed by police shows Salinas-Avery and another teen inside the store when the victim walked in. The two exchanged words before Salinas-Avery pulled a handgun with an extended magazine and opened fire through the front door after the victim retreated outside. The complaint states he covered his face while continuing to shoot, then pointed the gun at the man who had entered with the victim and at two nearby witnesses. He then returned to the doorway and fired more rounds outside before fleeing with the other teen through a back alley and into a bright blue Hyundai Elantra.

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On Sept. 11, Minneapolis police tracked down the Elantra in Saint Paul. Officers say the car, registered to his girlfriend’s mother, fled from a stop and crashed after a pursuit. Salinas-Avery was arrested at the scene.

During an interview, Salinas-Avery admitted being in the store but denied holding the gun shown on surveillance stills. The complaint also notes he is associated with a Saint Paul gang and had been sentenced to probation in another case just 11 days earlier. His juvenile history includes prior felony adjudications for stolen vehicles, escape, and two second-degree assaults.

Salinas-Avery is being held in the Hennepin County Jail on $1 million bail with conditions barring him from possessing weapons, using drugs or alcohol, or contacting co-defendants. If convicted of the attempted murder charge, he faces up to 20 years in prison. Each assault charge carries a maximum of seven years. Authorities have not released the condition of the victim as of publication.

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