Suspect charged in group attack near Target Field in Minneapolis

A Newport man is the latest suspect charged in a brutal group robbery and attack outside of Target Field.

Darian S. Rosenthal, 19, was charged Wednesday in Hennepin County District Court with one count of first-degree aggravated robbery.

Earlier this month authorities charged 18 people, some as young as 15, in two attacks that randomly targeted people in downtown Minneapolis who appeared vulnerable because they were alone, intoxicated or distracted.

According to the criminal complaint: Surveillance video showed about 12 people steal a cellphone from a man and "viciously" assault him on Aug. 3.

"The assailants rip the male's shoes and pants off and go through … his pockets," the charges said. "Victim is punched and kicked in the head several times throughout the altercation."

The video also showed the victim being thrown to the ground, struck with potted plants, jumped on and run over with a bicycle.

The victim and suspects fled by the time police arrived.

Rosenthal allegedly told police during a Sept. 4 interview that he was one of the suspects captured in the video, and he admitted striking and robbing the victim, the complaint said.

Rosenthal was charged via warrant and was not in custody by early Wednesday evening.

The suspects charged earlier this month face a sole count or combination of counts of first-degree robbery, aiding and abetting first-degree robbery and third-degree riot.

A second attack occurred Aug. 17 near 5th Street and Hennepin Avenue. The victim in that case told police he left a bar downtown and was using his phone when a group surrounded him. The attackers kicked and punched him until he was unconscious and robbed him.

He was later diagnosed with a concussion, court documents said. Surveillance footage in that case helped identify 10 suspects, one of whom is also charged in the Aug. 3 case.

Chao Xiong • 612-270-4708 Twitter: @ChaoStrib