Second person charged with attacking north Minneapolis homeless shelter

A second person has been charged with an attack on a north Minneapolis homeless shelter that forced dozens of women and children to relocate last week.

Robert Russell Brent III, 35, of Faribault, Minn., was charged Monday in Hennepin County District Court with two counts of second-degree assault, illegal weapons possession, threats of violence and second-degree riot in connection the Sept. 5 attack on St. Anne’s Place at 2634 Russell Av. N.

Brent was arrested about 7 p.m. Friday during a traffic stop in the 1800 block of Lowry Avenue N. He remains jailed in lieu of $100,000 bail. Court records do not list an attorney for him.

Alleged accomplice Eureka D. Riser, 33, of Minneapolis was arrested Thursday and is charged with second-degree riot with a dangerous weapon and first-degree damage to property.

Brent and Riser, also known as Eureka Willis, are alleged to have been among at least three people who went to St. Anne’s Place and threatened residents, smashing doors with a baseball bat. According to police, an argument between shelter residents and neighbors led to violence, resulting in at least one assault and gunfire damage to a vehicle.

Residents were forced to vacate the shelter, leaving the building boarded up with plywood and watched over by armed security. Building managers estimate that property damage amounts to more than $10,000, according to the County Attorney’s Office.

Hoang Murphy, CEO of People Serving People, which operates the shelter, said last week that the four-hour episode was the culmination of an argument between shelter residents and neighbors over street parking that started days earlier and spilled over into violence.

According to the criminal complaints, which cite surveillance footage:

Riser allegedly swung a baseball bat against the shelter’s doors, shattering glass while residents were inside. Brent pointed what appears to be a gun at the front door of the building. He also fired a shot that hit someone’s vehicle.

Residents had to relocate to a hotel for safety reasons, costing People Serving People $9,000 a night — a figure that Murphy called unsustainable.