Charge: Video from bus stopped near gunfire helps determine who killed man in north Minneapolis

The victim was shot in the head while leaving an apartment building around noon, according to the criminal complaint.

March 20, 2023 at 10:17PM

Video from a Metro Transit bus that just happened to be stopped nearby as gunfire erupted helped police determine who killed a 40-year-old man nearly two months ago in north Minneapolis, according to a criminal complaint filed Monday.

William V. Johnson, 37, of Minneapolis, was charged in Hennepin County District Court with second-degree intentional murder in connection with the Jan. 25 shooting of Mark D. Bradley, of St. Paul, in the 2200 block of N. Emerson Avenue.

Police arrested Johnson in south Minneapolis on March 13 on a separate case involving illegal possession of ammunition. He remains jailed ahead of a court appearance April 14. The attorney defending Johnson on the ammunition charge said Johnson does not yet have legal representation available to comment about the murder allegations.

According to Monday's complaint:

Just after noon, police responding to a report of a shooting arrived to find Bradley shot in the head and the abdomen. Emergency medical responders declared him dead at the scene.

Surveillance images from a church and a bus "that had coincidentally stopped near the shooting when it occurred" corroborated witness accounts that Bradley left an apartment building and was shot by one of two men as they entered.

One of the witnesses said the shooter was known as "Coleone," a name that police later connected to Johnson.

The complaint did not offer a motive for the killing.

On the day of the shooting, Jackie Burney told the Star Tribune she used to be roommates with Bradley.

"I never had problems with him," Burney said while walking near the scene. "He needed a place to stay, was a roommate of mine for a while and we got along fine."

There have been 12 homicides in Minneapolis so far this year, according to a Star Tribune database. That compares to 15 at this time in the city last year.

Star Tribune staff writer Louis Krauss contributed to this report.

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Paul Walsh

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Paul Walsh is a general assignment reporter at the Minnesota Star Tribune. He wants your news tips, especially in and near Minnesota.

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