Motorist faces murder charge for intentionally striking, killing motorcyclist on N. Minneapolis block, police say

A 31-year-old man faces murder charges after police say he intentionally struck and fatally ran over a motorcyclist with his SUV in Minneapolis' Jordan neighborhood last week before fleeing.

A criminal complaint lodged in Hennepin County District Court on Tuesday charged Quantelize Welch with second-degree murder in the fatal hit-and-run, which occurred July 20 in the area of N. 31st and Queen avenues on the city's North Side. Welch was arrested by police sometime over the weekend and booked into the county jail, where he remained held on $1 million bail Tuesday.

The victim, whose name hasn't been released by authorities, later died at North Memorial Health Hospital.

Welch, who court records show doesn't yet have an attorney, is expected to make his initial court appearance Wednesday afternoon.

Police believe that Welch was behind the wheel of an SUV that intentionally ran over the victim as he rode down an alley on a dirt bike. A witness told police the victim was test-driving the motorcycle when a white SUV followed him into an alley and ran into him,before speeding off, according to the complaint. That witness said they recognized Welch from seeing him around the neighborhood.

In all, police said that at least three people picked Welch out of a photo lineup after witnessing portions of the incident, the complaint said. Police detectives tracked down the SUV's registered owner, who said that a man he knew as "Zeast Man" or "Beast Man" had taken the SUV on July 17 and promised to bring it back within 20 minutes, but never did. The vehicle was later in the area of N. 33rd Avenue and N. 6th Street, with damage to its front end, the complaint said.

Libor Jany • 612-673-4064 Twitter: @StribJany