Teen charged with murder of St. Paul man who interrupted car burglary

A 17-year-old male has been charged with two counts of second-degree murder in the shooting death of a husband and father in his St. Paul yard as the man confronted someone rummaging through a car in front of the family's home.

Ramsey County prosecutors charged Kle Swee of St. Paul with second-degree intentional and unintentional murder Friday in connection with last weekend's shooting of Michael Brasel, 44, in the St. Anthony Park neighborhood.

Prosecutors signaled their intention to certify Swee as an adult in the killing.

During Swee's first court appearance Friday afternoon, his defense attorney asked to delay proceedings until Monday to allow the suspect time to read the charges against him.

The judge and prosecutors agreed, and his next hearing was scheduled for 2 p.m. Monday. Swee remains held at the juvenile detention center.

In a statement, County Attorney John Choi thanked police for their work and expressed his condolences to Brasel's family.

"This senseless act of gun violence tore apart a family as well as their community of neighbors and friends whose loss of a father, husband, friend and coach will be felt for a lifetime," Choi said.

"We are committed to addressing this youth's actions with every appropriate measure available to us."

Swee, who was arrested during a SWAT raid Wednesday, is accused of shooting Brasel in his front yard on May 6. Family members said Brasel was trying to prevent his wife's car from being broken into before the father of two and youth hockey coach was shot multiple times.

According to the charges:

Brasel's wife, Hilary Brasel, said he was up early and likely eating breakfast near their home's front window when he saw someone rummaging through her car. Brasel's son told investigators that he heard his dad yell, ''What are you doing?" before gunshots rang out. The boy looked outside to see a male with dark clothing get into a dark vehicle and speed away.

Hilary Brasel heard the shots and went outside to find her husband on his back with his eyes open. She started chest compressions and called for help, as onlookers phoned 911.

Officers arrived to find Brasel with three gunshot wounds to his chest and back. The family's gray Ford Flex was parked in the street with the driver's door open; blood was on the rear of the vehicle.

Brasel's wife said someone had apparently rifled through the car and placed items from the center console onto the driver's seat.

A resident on a nearby street also reported that their vehicle had been rummaged through before the shooting.

Investigators reviewed neighbors' camera footage and saw a smaller black ''coupe'' style vehicle with a sloped rear leaving the crime scene. Officers pieced together a call to Lauderdale police from earlier that day which stated a black sedan with a loud exhaust — similar to the exhaust noise heard on security footage near the shooting — swerved and lost its bumper while trying to avoid a stopped car near the intersection of Fulham Street and Roselawn Avenue W.

Officers recovered the bumper with a Minnesota license plate registered to a 2009 Honda Coupe. Days earlier, police had stopped the car and identified the driver as Kle Swee.

Charging documents say Swee's phone data placed him near Chilcombe Avenue, where Brasel was shot, at the time of the homicide. The data also placed him at the intersection of Fulham and Roselawn, where the coupe lost its bumper.

Swee fled when SWAT officers executed a search warrant at his home Wednesday, but he was later arrested and had a Honda key in his pocket. He declined to give authorities a statement.

Officers found the Honda in Swee's garage with its front bumper still missing. Distinctive paint chipping from around the rear window matched the color of the car seen in the St. Anthony Park residents' security footage taken around the time Brasel was shot, authorities said.

Swee's father told investigators the car was registered in his name but that only his son drove it. He said it was unusual for the car to be parked in the garage. He said the teen would not elaborate on how the car was damaged, only that he had been in an accident.

Officials were still investigating to determine if more people were involved in Brasel's shooting.

Charging documents said Swee killed Brasel while "aiding and abetting or being aided and abetted by another," adding that he or an accomplice possessed a firearm.

When Police Chief Axel Henry announced Swee's arrest, he did not say whether a gun was recovered. But he said he was "extremely confident" the 17-year-old is connected to the case.

In April 2022, Swee was implicated in the robbery of a St. Paul Harding High School student, allegedly cornering them in the bathroom and pointing a BB gun at their head. The victim fought with Swee after trying to grab the gun, then left the bathroom as Swee fled the school. Swee reportedly had recently transferred to Harding.

He was charged with aggravated robbery and a warrant was issued for his arrest. Officers at the time said the case was pending and would be reopened if the victim filed a report or cooperated with the investigation.