Charge: Carjacking victim killed after being lured on dating app to predawn meetup in Minneapolis

A woman lured a man she met on a dating app to a predawn meetup in north Minneapolis, where her accomplice fatally shot him as part of a carjacking plot, according to criminal complaints filed Wednesday and Thursday.

Megan Renee Karjala, 24, of Coon Rapids, and Vernon Sirhyde Archie, 28, of St. Paul, were each charged in Hennepin County District Court with second-degree murder in connection with the shooting of Da’Vonte Jovan Adams, 28, of Spring Valley, Minn., on May 17, 2024.

A nationwide warrant has been issued for their arrests.

Police found Adams about 4:45 a.m. on the ground in the 2200 block of 5th Avenue N. with gunshot wounds to his face, neck, chest and torso, the complaints read. He was pronounced dead at HCMC.

According to the complaints and related felony charges in Ramsey County District Court against both defendants:

Residents told officers they heard a male and a female arguing, followed by gunfire and a male yelling for help. A 911 caller reported seeing the pair drive off in what police later determined was Adams’ Chevy Suburban.

On May 20, police in St. Paul responded to a report of shots fired in the 100 block of Isabel Street and found Karjala and Archie nearby in a stolen Honda SUV.

Police seized from Archie live and spent rounds of .45-caliber ammunition. That’s the same caliber as a discharged cartridge casing found by police next to Adams' body.

They also recovered from Karjala one handgun of the same caliber and another, a .380-caliber, from the Honda. Both were loaded. Also seized were illicit drugs and burglary tools.

Law enforcement later determined the .45-caliber handgun in the Honda was used to kill Adams.

Adams' stolen SUV was found by police on May 19, and DNA from Karjala and Archie was inside the vehicle.

Surveillance video from the Minneapolis shooting showed Karjala and Archie both wearing ski masks as they walked parallel to each other on opposite sides of the street.

Adams pulled up minutes later. Karjala got in the front passenger seat shortly before the gunfire erupted.

Questioned by police, Karjala said she and Archie were desperate for money and were told by a friend how to steal vehicles.

She said she met Adams on a dating app, and they arranged to meet. When Adams arrived, she continued, she and Archie attempted to grab the keys. Adams ran for safety, Archie gave chase and shot Adams several times.

Karjala also drew a gun, the .380-caliber weapon seized in St. Paul, and pointed it at Adams as Archie took the SUV’s keys and then drove off in the victim’s SUV with Karjala.

Archie’s criminal history in Minnesota includes two assault convictions, one a felony and the other a gross misdemeanor, and one each for disorderly conduct and pawning someone else’s possessions.