Saturday, February 28, 2015

Criminal Complaint For "Mommy Shooter" Keith Allyn Ammons Shows Interesting Connections To The Victim Through Property Records...

Mug shots, therefore public domain, blog post by John Hoff

On September 11, 2011, I wrote about accused "Mommy Shooter" Keith Allyn Ammons and dug up what I could of his criminal record, click here. Ammons was subsequently convicted of the attempted murder and is now in prison. 

Now I have a copy of the criminal complaint with details about the shooting. Click here for the criminal complaint.

Other media, including the Star Tribune, have recounted the horrific details of this crime and, I must say, there aren't very many pertinent details missed by the Star Tribune.

Except, of course...

More On The Interesting Past Of Andrew Neal, Suspected In Shooting Of A Minneapolis Police Officer And, Ironically, Now Confirmed To Be A Former Police Informant...

Facebook photo, used under First Amendment Fair Comment and
Criticism, blog post by John Hoff

The Star Tribune has now confirmed something JNS blog suspected and wrote about days before...Andrew Neal, who is STRONGLY suspected in the wounding of a Minneapolis police officer, is a former police informant.  

Gun, Ammo Found? 

The criminal complaint document against Neal, posted on the Hennepin County Attorney's website, mentions police actually found a handgun and two magazines in the yard next door to the house where Neal was found hiding, and the weapon is being "forensically analyzed." JNS wouldn't bet a bag of stale peanuts against the likelihood of Neal facing murder charges, albeit I suspect these will be second degree murder charges. 

Messy Tale Of A Police Informant 

My previous story re-published the "fact sections" of a case in which Andrew Neal was involved as an informant concerning the murder of Juwan "Wheaty" Gatlin, a member of the Mickey Cobras gang. Now another court document, put in front of me by a reader and commenter, has further information about Andrew Neal's involvement with Gatlin murder case...

Monday, February 23, 2015

The Name "Andrew Neal" Brings Up An Interesting "Back In The Day" Court Case With A North Minneapolis Gang Called The "Mickey Cobras" And A Shooting On Logan Avenue North...

MN DOC Mugshot, therefore public domain, 
blog post by John Hoff

IT IS NOT CONFIRMED that police informant "Andrew Neal" from this 2001 Minnesota Supreme Court case is the same as Andrew Neal, pictured above, who is now infamous and was arrested following the shooting of a police officer in North Minneapolis. 

(ADDENDUM, FEBRUARY 28, 2015: Star Tribune subsequently confirmed Neal was a police informant

Neal has not been charged in the officer shooting. There is concern this was a "targeted" shooting. 

To be clear, I am publishing this story mostly because it's about North Minneapolis, plus it's full of names and interesting information, and these facts can't be found easily online because they're buried in this court document...

Source Tells JNS Blog About Aftermath Of The Nehemiah Steverson "Accidental" Shooting...

Facebook photo used under First Amendment Fair Comment
and Criticism, blog post by John Hoff

After this blog was told by an official source that no charges would be forthcoming in the shooting of Nehemiah Steverson, because the shooting had been ruled an "accident," information started coming my way about what happened after Steverson was shot...

Sunday, February 22, 2015

Robbery Victims Identified James Henry Horshaw (Not Pictured Below) From His Facebook, Allegedly...

Image in public domain of the character "Horshack" from
classic television show Welcome Back, Kotter, blog
post by John Hoff

 Click here for the criminal complaint.

On January 29, police responded to a robbery at Lowry and Newton Avenue North in Minneapolis, where a victim named "A.J." said she'd been parked with two friends when a couple males approached and robbed her of a phone and wallet...

Mortgage Fraud Victims, Insurance Company Await State Appeals Court Ruling From "Imposter Foster" Civil Court Case...The Ghosts Of 1564 Hillside Ave. N. Still Walk The Earth!

Creative stock photo, blog post by John Hoff

Click here for the appellant's reply brief. 

Click here for AIG's brief, and the first page is unreadable, sorry, but keep scrolling down for the rest of a very long document. 

This blog has followed developments in this convoluted case for more than half a decade. John Foster and his wife Melony Michaels were the victims of a mortgage fraud at 1564 Hillside Avenue North. John Foster's identity and perfect credit was stolen by a crackhead named Jerome KingRussell, as part of a fraud cooked up by Larry Maxwell and others. 

Maxwell went to prison over the fraud. The victims sued in civil court and won a judgment of $849,000 but the money has proven hard to collect because the insurance company doesn't want to pay. (Well, I guess that's understandable) The house was demolished a long time ago. Here's a link to a blog article about the lawsuit which has yet more links and traces a lot of the story to date. 

Now both sides have filed briefs in Minnesota's State Court of Appeals, made their arguments, and wait. The question is not whether the $849,000 judgment is valid. 

The question is whether the plaintiffs can collect from the defendant's insurance company...

Police Scanner Listener Caught Exclusive, Red Hot Details About Possible "Targeted" Police Shooting In North Minneapolis...

MN DOC mugshot, therefore public domain, blog post
by John Hoff

Eyes Of The Nation On North Minneapolis  

Andrew Neal, pictured above in his prison mugshot, is caught up in something big and awful which has made the national news. Mr. Neal might only be a multiple felon on parole who did something incredibly stupid (allegedly) and now stands accused of burglary and assault, held on no bail. 

But while police were responding to the incidents involving Neal, (allegedly) one of those police was shot sitting in his squad car. So it sure LOOKS like a targeted shooting along the lines of the fatal incident in New York, though I might mention...

Andrew J. Neal, Suspected Of Taking A Shot At A North Minneapolis Cop, Has A Record As Long As My Arm Full Of Second, Third, Fourth Chances From The Justice System...

Andrew Neal, Facebook photo, used under First Amendment
Fair Comment and Criticism, blog post by John Hoff

Officer Targeted As A Diversion? 

As promised in a "breaking news" blog post, here is everything The Adventures of Johnny Northside blog can dig up about Andrew Neal, suspected of targeting a Minneapolis police officer in the manner of the fatal targeting of two New York police officers...

Saturday, February 21, 2015

WHO IS ANDREW NEAL? In An Hour Or Two, JNS Blog Will Have More Detailed Answers Than Any Media Entity In The Nation, Stand By...

DOMAIN, blog post by John Hoff

In the wake of what appears to be the deliberate and targeted shooting of a police officer, like the tragic incident in New York City which resulted in hundreds of police officers turning their backs on the mayor, the whole country is asking "Who is this guy named Andrew Neal, and did he attempt to murder a Minneapolis police officer?"

This much I can tell you quickly. Andrew Neal...

AGING HOOKER LOOKING FOR A BIG LAWSUIT PAYDAY OR JUST A CASE OF "NAME IS THE SAME?" Court Filings May Reveal Desperate Final Battles Of The Mahmood Khan Rental Property Empire...

Photo contributed by Hawthorne Hawkman, blog post by John Hoff

Decisive City Action Against Khan, HOORAY

Pictured above, a Mahmood Khan property where a fire took place, 2008 21st Ave. North. It's not the only property where there's been a fire on Khan's watch. There was a fire in March of 2013 at 4425 Aldrich Ave. North which had people bailing out of windows and one couple dangling their four-year-old child from the window...

Hennepin County Bi-Weekly Jail Roster, February 6, 2015 To February 20, 2015...

Facebook meme image, free use assumed, blog post by
John Hoff, jail roster is public data 

Sometimes I get emails griping about the fact I've published somebody's name on this roster. These emails often contain a line like "This is the first thing which comes up when people search my name on Google" or, even more incredibly, "This is the ONLY thing that comes up when people search my name on Google." 

Since I no longer remove names from the jail roster, all I can offer is some free advice... 

Friday, February 20, 2015

Here Is The Face Of A Guy Who Faced Nine Years In Prison, But Only Got FOUR, Yes, It's Drive By Shooter Patrick Carl Timberlake...

MN DOC mugshot, therefore public domain, blog
post by John Hoff

Recently, while trying to find a mugshot for Antonio Timberlake (who was recently convicted of 11 counts of robbery) I came across a mugshot for another guy who is almost certainly from the same notorious North Minneapolis crime family; yes, it's convicted drive-by shooter Patrick Carl Timberlake. 

I was struck by the happy expression on his face but when I looked at the MN DOC website to see how much time he was serving, I understood why Patrick looks so upbeat in his mugshot. Patrick was facing the possibility of nine years in prison for...

Thursday, February 19, 2015

JNS BLOG RED HOT SUPER EXCLUSIVE: Death Of Nehemiah Steverson Ruled An Accident, Nobody Will Be Prosecuted...

Facebook photo, used under First Amendment Fair Comment
and Criticism, blog post by John Hoff

JNS blog was informed today by an official source that nobody will be prosecuted in the shooting death of Nehemiah Steverson since the death has been ruled an accident in light of the evidence. 

This is a somewhat surprising development and I do not have any further information about how, exactly, this "accident" happened, whether it was yet another "janky" gun incident on the Northside, or one of those...

Antonio Timberlake Blog Post Sets Off Intense Facebook Discussion (Both Angry And Prideful) On Page Of Jamica "The Driver" Holden, Formerly Jamica Timberlake...

Antonio Timberlake, mugshot is public domain, blog
post by John Hoff

Click here for PDF showing the Facebook discussion.

"Always making friends, aren't you?" said the sarcastic title of an email I opened this morning.  

Attached to the email was the PDF, linked above, of a Facebook discussion set off by yesterday's blog post about eleven "straight" guilty pleas by Antonio Timberlake. The pleas to robbery charges were announced in a press release by the Hennepin County Attorney's Office. 

The Facebook discussion in question took place on the page of Jamica "The Driver" Holden (who goes by Jamica Ripskitz on Facebook) and mostly centers around visceral dislike of Johnny Northside. 

The discussion is illustrated, at times, with amusing (though crude) internet memes. My personal favorite is the root vegetable shaped like... 

Wednesday, February 18, 2015

Antonio Timberlake, Criminal Associate Of "Turd Burglar" Navarr Ross, Goes Down For 11 Charges Associated With Four Robberies, Famous Turd Burglar Navarr Ross Was Involved In One Of Those Robberies, Already Doing Time...(CORRECTED BLOG POST)

Contributed photo of North Minneapolis "turd burglar" incident, 
which precise turd burglar is pictured is unknown, blog post by
John Hoff

ADDENDUM, FEBRUARY 20: This blog post originally described Antonio Timberlake as one of the "turd burglars" arrested at the scene of a Thanksgiving robbery. In fact, Timberlake was NOT involved in that robbery. Rather, he was associated with Navarr Ross--a known and convicted member of the turd burglarly ring--and committed eleven armed robberies, and in one of those robberies Ross was an accoplice. JNS blog strives for accuracy and when error comes to my attention, I jump to make correction. 

In a press release today by the Hennepin County Attorney, that office announced a "straight guilty plea" to 11 charges by Antonio Timberlake, age 17. The eleven charges stemmed from four separate robbery incidents. There was no deal with prosecutors and Timberlake could receive up to 172 months. Two of the victims received life-threatening stab wounds. 

Timberlake had some criminal fame rub off upon him by being associated with Navarr Ross, who was involved in the burglary of a Northside home. Neighbors (one wearing superhero pajamas) assisted police in keeping a passel of juvenile burglars trapped in a house until just moments before...

Kim Kardashian Broke The Internet, But Mahmood Khan Broke MNCIS Online Court Records System...Here Is The Chronology Of Pain, Suffering And Eviction!

Image of Kim Kardashian in public domain, blog post
by John Hoff (Come on, you have to admit that's a
much nicer picture than an image of a 62-year-old
low-end landlord) 

Trying to follow up with a piece of information in a recent Star Tribune article--that some of Mahmood Khan's tenants are suing him over a fire at one of his many properties--I tried looking up the civil court case on MNCIS using what must surely be the preferred spelling for Khan's first name, which turns out to be "Mahmood" and not "Mahmoud," though I've seen it both ways.  

Let me tell you, friends and neighbors, I've been running names through Minnesota's online court record system (MNCIS) for a long time. And, sure, if you run an incredibly common name with no additional information, such as a birthday, you might get a lot of search results. 

But in half a decade of running names (even common names that produce a lot of results) I've never seen red letters come up on MNCIS, like so...

Tuesday, February 17, 2015

Link To "Trashy Straw That Broke Camel's Back" In Appeals Court Case Against Landlord Mahmoud Khan, As StarTribune Reports Khan Might LOSE ALL HIS RENTAL LICENSES!!!!!

Photo by John Hoff, door of a Khan property, blog
post by John Hoff

Click here for a Minnesota Court of Appeals case from December of 2014. 

We Are Winning! 

In yet another major piece of progress for North Minneapolis neighborhood revitalization, the Star Tribune is reporting that slumlord Mahmood Khan likely faces the loss of all his rental licenses, which would be the biggest action against a landlord by Minneapolis since...

Devon Derrick Parker, Accused Of Murdering "Good Samaritan" Thomas Sonnenberg, Sits In Jail And Has A Hearing In March...

MN DOC mugshot, therefore public domain, blog post
by John Hoff

In a crime that was shocking even by North Minneapolis standards and received worldwide attention, but was first written about by a "Facebook journalist" on North Vent, Devon D. Parker was accused of murdering "Good Samaritan" Thomas Sonnenberg and assaulting Sonnenberg's wife, click here for the criminal complaint. 

The incident happened January 31, 2014. One year later, give or take a couple weeks, I figured it was about time to for an update on Parker...

Monday, February 16, 2015

Search Warrant At 2936 Aldrich Ave. N. Turns Up Three-Year-Old Child Sleeping In A House With Guns, Currency, Black Tar Heroin, According To Police (CORRECTED BLOG POST)

Photo in public domain of black tar heroin, image is not intended to
show the same black tar heroin seized in the story, blog post by
John Hoff  

Click here for the criminal complaint.

Acting on information from an informant, on January 9 the Minneapolis Police Department executed a search warrant on 2936 Aldrich Ave. N. expecting to find drugs. Police were not disappointed in what they turned up, (allegedly) though in addition to cocaine, black tar heroin, two pistols, and $4,000 in currency they also found a three-year-old child sleeping on a bed...

THE ADVENTURES OF JOHNNY NORTHSIDE will retire in June, 2015 unless blogging can miraculously become a decent paying gig...

Contributed photo, blog post by John Hoff

Mission (Soon To Be) Complete 

SEVEN YEARS AGO, when I started this blog on February 21, 2008, I wrote a kind of "mission statement" beneath the title "The Adventures of Johnny Northside." Here is what some of that mission statement said, and what it still says today: 

I am here to be near my son.

The wacky and colorful adventures which caused me to become a homeowner in North Minneapolis (twice!) have not been written upon this blog. And I won't be writing about those private matters today; at least not in depth and detail. 

But following an inner voice of conscience since January of 2000, in Seattle, Washington, I have done everything in my power to live near my son even if it meant sleeping in a van, in an old RV, in run down rural houses purchased for pennies on the dollar, or living in the roughest four square blocks of North Minneapolis...

Saturday, February 14, 2015

One Year After Five Children Perish In Valentine's Day Fire, There Is A Trustee For The Children But No Court Activity Since July Of 2014...But Former Tenant Dianna Jones Settled Lawsuit Last Week!

Image of Honorable Cara Lee Neville used on State Courts
website, therefore no copyright as a government document, 
blog post by John Hoff  

It was one year ago, exactly, when a Valentine's Day fire claimed the lives of five of the children of Troy Lewis in a property owned by landlord Paul Bertelson.

Two children who survived the fire were reportedly placed in the custody of Child Protective Services.  Mainstream media predicted a lawsuit and then other media outside of Minneapolis picked up the same refrain but so far...

Year-Long Blog Experiment To Change "Image Search" Results For "North Minneapolis" Can Only Be Called A Failure...Oh, Well, Back To The Drawing Board!

Photo by John Hoff, circa 2008, in front of The Apartment
Complex of Anarchy, blog post by John Hoff

It has been one year since this blog attempted an experiment to see if I could change the results in Google "image search" for "North Minneapolis." 

Currently, today, this red hot minute...if you perform such a search the images that come up involve the 2011 tornado, the mortgage crisis, and crime. In that order. In fact the entire first page of results does NOT show crime, but the tornado and the mortgage crisis, and, well, that's kind of encouraging I suppose.



Contributed photo, blog post by John Hoff



Tuesday, February 10, 2015

Dante Carter, On Probation For Gun Possession, Now Charged With Gun Possession...

Image of "Dante" in public domain, blog post by
John Hoff 

Click here for the criminal complaint. 

Dante Kenneth-Christopher Carter (yes, the hyphen is supposed to be there and it's about driving me nuts) was already on probation for possessing a gun after a felony assault conviction when he was pulled over by police in Brooklyn Center for doing 47 in a 35 mph zone. 


The car smelled strongly of marijuana, according to the criminal complaint, and in the car...

"Odd Little Rental Property Footnote" In Arrest Of North Minneapolis Tax Preparer Leads Back To Interesting Places...

Hennepin County Sheriff's Department mug shot, published by other mass media, it
is a public document and can't be copyrighted, blog post by John Hoff 

If I keep pulling on this string, will it unravel somebody's sweater? (Musical tribute link) 

Previously, I wrote about an "odd little footnote" to the arrest of a North Minneapolis tax preparer who allegedly bilked the State of Minnesota out of, like, more than a million dollars and filed tax returns (allegedly) that were amazing works of fiction. 

What struck me as odd is the tax preparer in question, Rona Estelle Griffin, lives in a RENTAL property. So if her scam was so lucrative, why throw away good green money on (shudder) rent? 

Or, as I like to call it, "habitation serfdom." Of course, since she was hiding vast amounts of income, lack of home ownership may have been a necessary part of the scam. 

It turns out Estelle's apparent landlord, Manoj Moorjani, has a very informative website dedicated to his rental property empire...

Friday, February 6, 2015

An Odd Little Rental Property Footnote To Recent "Tax Fraud" Charges Filed By Hennepin County Attorney Against North Minneapolis Resident Rona E. Griffin...

Creative stock photo, blog post by John Hoff

Ah, Some Nice Variety In North Minneapolis Crime! 

The Hennepin County Attorney recently announced charges against a tax preparer who allegedly defrauded the state out of $1.7 million in taxes, reportedly cooking up elaborate false returns for others while neglecting to file any herself. 

The woman, Rona Estelle Griffin, 51, ran a company called "H & H Broker" at 4646 Aldrich Avenue North, according to the...

Bi-Weekly Hennepin County Jail Roster, January 22, 2015 To February 5, 2015

Creative stock photo, blog post by John Hoff

Pictured above, a simulation of what happens when a fresh jail roster is offered to a flock of Google bots. 

Beyond that, what is there to say but "innocent until and unless proven guilty." 

So without further ado...

Tough Questions Being Asked About Ishmael Israel (Formerly Known As Sean Cory Brunswick) And NRRC...

Image from Ishmael Israel Dot Com, used
under First Amendment Fair Comment and
Criticism, blog post by John Hoff

Tempest, Meet Teapot 

A previous article here on Johnny Northside has, I am told, caused quite a stir in certain neighborhood circles and the ripples have reached as far as Minneapolis City Hall where (I am told) tough questions are being asked about Ishmael Israel (formerly known as "Sean Cory Brunswick") and what is, precisely, his role at NRRC? And is there any conflict of interest? 

Apparently at least a few highly involved citizens were quietly rumbling about what was happening with NRRC but the blog article was sort of a catalyst for conversation. 

Glad to help. 

Layers Of Delicious Oniony Goodness, Um, Wait, Just Make That Delicious And Oniony 

One source told me Israel has so many onion-like layers that getting to the bottom would be a massive project, but my source tipped me off that the key to unlocking "Israeli history" would be to learn Israel's name before he changed it to "Israel Ishmael." 

Well, click here. His former name of "Sean Cory Brunswick" is on a Consent Order of the State of Minnesota Commissioner of Commerce denying Israel a real estate salesperson license because of criminal history.

Other searches using "Sean Cory Brunswick" easily turn up other interesting stuff, enough to have "neighborhood types" concerned about this guy...

Sunday, February 1, 2015

Randy Donnerson, Father Of Slain Teen Nehemiah Steverson, Arrested On Yet Another Allegation Of Drunk Driving...

Facebook photo used under First Amendment Fair Comment and Criticism,
blog post by John Hoff

This blogger already wrote a lengthy and rather purple-prosey explanation of why I publish this sort of info rather than sugar-coating ugly facts, in the manner (I would assert) of many in the mass media. So I'll spare you, the reader, a repetition of that kind of justification, though the link above also contains previous arrests and convictions for Randy Continal Donnerson. 

And he's at it again. Allegedly...