Murder charge: Man overdoses in Twin Cities hotel room, has jewels and bank cards stolen by 2 women

Two women met a Twin Cities man for a sexual rendezvous at a Maple Grove hotel room, where they stole his jewelry and bank cards after he suffered a fatal drug overdose, charges say.

Marquesha Simone Lindsey-Mullins, 29, of St. Paul, stands charged in Hennepin County District Court with third-degree murder and felony theft in connection with the death of 42-year-old Zachary Mulder, of Maple Grove, in September at the Cambria Suites.

The Hennepin County Medical Examiner’s Office ruled that Mulder died from a mixture of fentanyl and alcohol.

Lindsey-Mullins remains jailed in lieu of $500,000 bail ahead of a March 14 court appearance. Her co-defendants have also been charged with felonies: Aashion Aireal Leney Goldsby, 27, of Brooklyn Park, with theft; and 30-year-old Damon Sentall Smith, of Minneapolis, with bank card fraud and theft.

Smith is in jail in lieu of $25,000 bail and is due in court on Wednesday. Goldsby was charged by summons and has a March 12 court date.

Messages left by the Minnesota Star Tribune for each defendant or their attorneys seeking a response to the allegations have yet to be returned as of Monday.

Mulder’s death occurred two weeks after his wife gave birth to a girl, according to an online fundraising campaign started on behalf of his family.

According to his online obituary, Mulder was the father of four daughters and four stepchildren, loved the Minnesota Vikings and the outdoors and found his career in the North Dakota oilfields.

“As a direction driller, he strived to be the best, often setting records to beat. He made lifelong friends and found great purpose in his work,” the obituary read.

According to the charges and a related court document:

Police responding to a request for a welfare check on Sept. 18 went to a Cambria Suites room, where they found Mulder dead on the bed. In the room were his clothes, cellphone and his wallet with five bank cards. His wife told police she believed it would have held many more.

Mulder’s wife added that her husband went to the hotel while intoxicated the previous day after they had a fight. She received a notification early in the morning that he made a $300 ATM withdrawal.

Police learned through interviews with hotel staff and from video surveillance that Mulder went to the bar there late on Sept. 17, 2022. He had two drinks and appeared engaged with his phone most of the time.

Shortly after 1:20 a.m., Mulder and women later identified as Lindsey-Mullins and Goldsby entered his hotel room. The women left about 25 minutes later wrapped in white towels. “They walked quickly and were giggling,” the complaint read. Minutes later, they left in a vehicle.

After her arrest in January, Goldsby told police that neither she nor Lindsey-Mullins called 911 or alerted hotel staff to Mulder being in distress.

Lindsey-Mullins and Goldsby both have sexually oriented ads that list their rate as $300 per hour, the same amount Mulder withdrew.

Mulder’s wife told police that attempts were made to use his bank cards at Heritage Estate Jewelry in the Mall of America by a man later identified as Smith. She also saw transactions at other stores at the megamall that police attributed to Smith.

A police tally of actual or attempted transactions with Mulder’s bank cards totaled more than $76,000, with nearly all of them occurring at the jewelry store.

Police also learned that Smith pawned a Gucci chain necklace and a gold ring with diamonds at Max It Pawn in Minneapolis. They appeared to match what Mulder had been wearing. The necklace fetched $700 and the ring $150.

About six days later, Lindsey-Mullins and Smith were spotted in Plymouth in a car. Smith had one of Mulder’s bank cards and a $1,800 watch. Police found in the vehicle three more of Mulder’s bank cards, a receipt from Mall of America and suspected methamphetamine or fentanyl.

Smith said he bought the watch and bank card from a homeless man.

Police seized Lindsey-Mullins' phone and saw photos of Mulder’s wallet, identification and bank cards. The images were timestamped 6 minutes before Lindsey-Mullins and Goldsby left Mulder’s hotel room.

On Jan. 10, a woman came to police and recounted what she said Goldsby told her: that Lindsey-Mullins put a piece of paper to Mulder’s face and moments later he was on his back and changing colors. After trying to revive him, Lindsey-Mullins and Goldsby took off with his jewelry, money and bank cards.

Goldsby was arrested on Jan. 17. She told police that she was dancing for Mulder and then went into the bathroom. Lindsey-Mullins knocked on the door and said they had to leave.

Goldsby said she and Lindsey-Mullins tried to awaken Mulder by slapping his face and dumping water on him. She said Lindsey-Mullins took Mulder’s jewelry and wallet.

Smith and Lindsey-Mullins both have felony criminal histories in Minnesota. Goldsby’s only conviction beyond traffic and parking offenses is for gross misdemeanor theft.

Lindsey-Mullins is charged in federal court on allegations that police seized fentanyl from her at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. In 2019, she also was convicted in federal court for transporting a 13-year-old girl out of state for criminal sexual activity.

Smith has two open cases in Hennepin County on charges of fleeing police and cocaine possession.