Charges against 24-year-old in St. Paul drug-related killing point to teen, 17, as the shooter

A 24-year-old man was charged Thursday as an accomplice to a 17-year-old suspected of fatally shooting a man in St. Paul last week.

Justyn T. Hosley, of Inver Grove Heights, was charged in Ramsey County District Court with two counts of aiding and abetting murder in connection with the shooting of Donte Combs, 23, of Minneapolis, on Nov. 5 in the 400 block of Thomas Avenue, police said. Combs died the next day at Regions Hospital.

Hosley remains jailed in lieu of $1 million bail and has a court appearance scheduled for Friday. Court records do not list an attorney for him.

The charges say that Hosley has a criminal history that includes felony convictions for aggravated robbery, first-degree burglary, third-degree assault and receiving stolen property.

According to the charges in Combs' death:

Combs met with Hosley and said he wanted to sell some pills. Another male, later determined to be the 17-year-old suspect, soon walked up to Combs and Hosley.

Hosley asked Combs if the pills were fake, and Combs said they were real. Hosley then said, "Pop him, he's trying to sell us fake [pills]."

Combs ran, but the 17-year-old shot Combs at least twice.

Officers arrived at the scene about 10:20 p.m. and saw Combs had been shot in the back.

The next day, a police investigator saw a Facebook posting on an account listed to Hosley that implicated the 17-year-old as the shooter.

When police arrested the teen the next day, he had with him a handgun that is suspected of being the murder weapon. The 17-year-old denied killing Combs and asked for a lawyer.

Hosley told police that he wasn't with the teen during the shooting, claiming he was at home and that his court-imposed ankle bracelet would confirm his alibi. When shown the Facebook posting that implicated the 17-year-old, Hosley asked for an attorney.

There have been 29 homicides in St. Paul so far this year.

Paul Walsh • 612-673-4482