Charges: After losing fight outside funeral, man shot the victor in the back
MN DOC
The suspect on the run following a fatal shooting outside a funeral in Minneapolis shot the victim after being beaten by him in a fistfight.
Second-degree murder charges have been filed against Kevin Mason, 26, who is wanted for fatally shooting Dontevius Catchings, 29, outside the Shiloh Temple in North Minneapolis on June 11.
According to witness reports in the criminal complaint, Mason and Catchings were members of the same street gang, and were both in attendance for the funeral of Christopher Jones, the 24-year-old who was one of two fatally shot outside the Monarch nightclub on May 22.
The pair proceeded to the parking lot where they were involved in an altercation, with the criminal complaint saying police observed the fight as they carried out observation on the funeral as they knew street gang members would be in attendance and "and were concerned about further violence."
Per the complaint: "Based on their observations of the fight, officers grew concerned that further violence could commence. After observing the fight, officers heard gunshots and raced to the scene. As officers raced toward the gunshots, the attendees of the funeral, including potential suspects and witnesses, fled the area on foot and in vehicles."
One witness said that onlookers were told not to get involved in the fight between Catchings and Mason, in which Catchings "prevailed in a fistfight," leaving Mason with a bloodied face.
The witness said that at one point Mason stopped fighting back, with Catchings turning around and walking away, ending the fight.
"As [Catchings] walked away from [Mason], however, Mason popped up to his feet, unexpectedly pulled out a handgun from his pants, furtively moved towards [Catchings], and began shooting repeatedly at Catchings."
As he opened fired, Mason could be heard repeatedly calling Catchings a "bitch." Another witness told police that after the initial fistfight was over, Catchings told the onlooking crowd that the fight didn't have anything to do with anyone else, and that the pair were still friends.
Further witness accounts revealed the pair had been involved in an altercation a couple weeks earlier, when the pair encountered each other at a gathering and arguing about a stolen handgun.
The altercation escalated to the point Mason moved to pull out a gun, before others at the scene defused the situation.
Mason is on the run, with the criminal complaint noting that Mason had deleted his Facebook page after the shooting, and his whereabouts are unknown.
