Man charged with murder of 9-year-old Trinity Ottoson-Smith
Murder charges have been filed in Hennepin County District Court against 19-year-old Dpree Shareef Robinson, who is accused of fatally shooting 9-year-old Trinity Ottoson-Smith (pictured above) in Minneapolis last year.
Robinson was arrested at his home in Minneapolis Wednesday by agents with the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA), and formally charged with second-degree murder on Thursday morning.
Ottson-Smith was jumping on a trampoline in the backyard of a home in north Minneapolis with two other children when a barrage of gunfire erupted from a vehicle. She was "directly between the shooter and the intended targets, who appeared to be three males on the side porch of the residence," the criminal complaint says.
Ottoson-Smith, died 12 days after the May 15, 2021 shooting.
The criminal complaint says investigators were able to identity the vehicle involved in the drive-by as a red 2014 Ford Fusion, which had been bought by Robinson three days before the shooting. Investigators say Robinson instructed the man he bought the car from "not to let anyone know he had the Ford Fusion."
Robinson was a known gang member, according to the charges.
"On his social media accounts, [Robinson] has touted himself as an active shooter for the Black Disciples Criminal Street Gang, making repeated references to firearms, shooting, the 'opps,' (street slang for opposition or rival gangs), and other comments like, 'Never stand down bitch my mama raised a gangsta," and, 'I know how to shoot and I know how to fight.' [Robinson] also refers to himself as 'GDK,' or 'Gangster Disciple Killer,' which refers to a rival gang of Black Disciples."
Furthermore, Robinson was arraigned in February 2021 for "engaging in threatening social media communications" with a resident on the 2200 block of Ilion Avenue in north Minneapolis, which is where the drive-by shooting happened.
Robinson's intended target was a rival gang member who is the brother of Robinson's ex-girlfriend. Their relationship ended three days before the shooting, charges state. Robinson is also accused of sending threatening messages to his intended target, who is a member of the Money Chasing Demons (MCD) street gang.
"The communications between [Robinson] and [his ex-girlfriend's brother] were aggressive and indicative of the kind that result in shootings between rival gang members," the charges say. "For context, [Robinson] had a number of previous posts that insinuated he was out looking for 'opps,' but they were afraid to come outside and face him."
The Ford Fusion used in the drive-by shooting has never been found.
The charging documents note that about 30 minutes after Ottoson-Smith was fatally shot, Robinson did three internet searches "related to changing the paint on a 2014 Ford Fusion, then quit using this cell phone forever." The Ford Fusion used in the drive-by shooting has never been found.
In June, search warrants obtained by police revealed a Facebook conversation Robinson had with a girlfriend who on eight different occasions "made reference to or directly called [Robinson], a 'child killer,'" and at one point tells him, "i hope you die for killin that lil girl."
The charging documents show that Robinson responded to her message with "Idgaf ('I don't give a f***') what we go threw (sic) you don't ever wanna see me in that cell."
Earlier this month, investigators spoke with a witness who said Robinson admitted to being at the scene of Ottoson-Smith's murder and that Robinson was involved in a shootout with rival gang members, though Robinson was unsure if it was his shots or the rival gang member's shots that killed Ottoson-Smith.
Surveillance video showed Ottoson-Smith had been struck by the drive-by gunfire, which was followed by one of the three males sitting on the porch running into the alley and firing three rounds at the Ford Fusion.
Ottoson-Smith was one of three children shot in the head during a rash of gun violence in Minneapolis in April and May last year. Six-year-old Aniya Allen's killer has not been identified, nor has the individual who shot then-10-year-old Ladavionne Garrett Jr., who was hospitalized for six months after being shot while riding in a car on April 30.
Anyone with information about any of the shootings is asked to contact CrimeStoppers online or by calling 1-800-222-8477.
