Mankato man who pistol-whipped grandmother, fired at Minneapolis police, pointed gun at child admits guilt

A 32-year-old Mankato man who fired at Minneapolis police after threatening a child and pistol-whipping a grandmother during a series of break-ins in January has since pleaded guilty to both state and federal charges stemming from the incident.

Kamau Evans is now awaiting sentencing after admitting to his role in a harrowing series of events that started when he broke into his ex-girlfriend’s south Minneapolis home about 3 a.m. on Jan. 14.

According to state and federal charges, the woman, who shared a 1-year-old child with Evans and had a temporary order for protection against him at the time, called 911 and fled with their baby and her 19-year-old son as Evans entered her room.

Evans then went to the woman’s mother’s home in north Minneapolis, where she lived with a 9-year-old child and one of her daughter’s children, who is 20 years old. The 20-year-old woke up to the sound of gunshots and broken glass. He called 911 and could hear someone walking up the stairs. He locked a bedroom door, but Evans kicked it open while pointing a gun at him.

During that break-in, the 20-year-old reported, Evans hit him in the back of the head with a gun and put the gun in his mouth. Evans also hit the 74-year-old grandmother with the gun after she tried to escape, and he pointed the gun at the child. The grandmother needed seven staples in her head.

Officers learned an armed suspect was barricading himself in a Minneapolis residence where the grandmother and child said Evans threatened to kill them. Evans shot in the direction of five officers while they went up a staircase in tactical formation. The lead officer carrying a ballistic shield announced “police department” and saw Evans pop around the corner and fire at them.

Evans jumped out a bathroom window and ran, but additional officers were in the backyard to arrest him. Police found the handgun, which Evans was ineligible to possess because of multiple felony convictions.

In federal court on Wednesday, Evans pleaded guilty to one count of possessing a firearm as a felon. A sentencing date has not been set for that case. Evans also pleaded guilty earlier this month in Hennepin County District Court to two state charges of first-degree assault, and he will be sentenced there on Aug. 22.

Star Tribune staff writer Kim Hyatt contributed to this report.