Teens charged in Minneapolis slayings; motive still a mystery

Katricia Daniels was stabbed more than 100 times as she was chased through her home on the 3600 block of 1st Avenue S. A television was smashed on the head of her 10-year-old son.

Horrific details of last week's double homicide in Minneapolis were made public Tuesday in the charges filed against two teenagers.

The criminal complaint says Stafon Edward Thompson, 17, and Brian Lee Flowers, 16, both of Minneapolis, were friends of Daniels' 15-year-old son, who was jailed in Chicago at the time of the killings. But it does not explain the motive.

"We don't know why this murder was committed and we may never know," Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman said. "The level of violence coupled with a lack of motive leaves us shaking our heads."

Two knives, a golf club and a TV set are believed to be the murder weapons. The weapons were recovered. There was no sign of forced entry. Thompson and Flowers are charged with two counts each of first-degree premeditated murder and two counts each of murder while committing aggravated robbery. Each young man blamed the other in statements to police.

The suspects were arrested at City Hall after they were interviewed by detectives.

"The case shook that block, and residents were very forthcoming with information," said Lt. Amelia Huffman, head of the homicide unit.

The suspects had socialized with Daniels' family in the past and had been at the family's duplex the night of the killings. Daniels' 15-year-old son was jailed in Chicago at the time of the murders on charges in an unrelated shooting.

Brian Flowers, Thompson and the 15-year-old are affiliated with a gang, but that doesn't appear to a motive, police said. Both teenagers have criminal histories, but nothing to show a pattern of violence.

Police were called about 7 a.m. Thursday after Joe Williams came home from his night job and found his girlfriend and her son dead.

Daniels' blood-covered body was in the bathroom. The bloody body of 10-year-old Robert Shepard was in a bedroom. Williams found his 1-year-old daughter covered in blood but uninjured.

Blood was spattered throughout the house, which had bloody footprints, handprints and fingerprints.

"It was an emotionally charged investigation because of the nature of the killing and the age of one of the victims," Huffman said.

Cell phone leads to 'T.S.'

Investigators tracked the last call made on Daniels' cell phone to a female identified only as T.S. in the complaint. She told police she drove the two suspects to the victims' residence about 10 p.m. Wednesday. She later told police she picked them up at 3 a.m. Thursday at the home after receiving a call from Thompson.

She told police she took both teens back to her apartment and that Thompson was covered in blood and had cuts on his hands. They told her some unknown gang members broke into Daniels' house and they fought with them, the complaint said.

Thompson told the same story to police before later admitting there were no intruders. He then said Flowers wanted money and intended to rob Daniels. He said Flowers attacked Daniels with a knife and golf club, according to the complaint. After Daniels was dead, Thompson said, Flowers said the boy had to be killed also. Thompson said he left the house. He told police he got cuts on his hands from trying to stop Flowers, the complaint said.

Thompson admitted throwing away his bloody clothes, but provided several false statements about where he tossed them. He also admitted to wearing gloves while in the victims' home, the complaint said.

Flowers blamed the killings on Thompson. He said Thompson wanted Daniels' car, so he attacked her with a knife and a golf club. Flowers said he kept the boy from seeing what was happening to his mother, but Thompson insisted on killing him so there would be no witness. Thompson attacked the boy and smashed a television set on his head, Flowers said.

Evidence thrown in garbage

The two then ran into the alley and disposed of a bloody knife. Flowers admitted to taking Daniels' cell phone and throwing it in a garbage can a few blocks away.

An unidentified neighbor contacted police and reported seeing two people in the alley on Thursday just before 3 a.m. Police recovered bloody clothes from the residence of T.S. as well as from a garbage can near her house. They also found three gloves in a garbage can in an alley behind the murder scene.

Both teenagers will be arraigned at 1:30 p.m. today in Hennepin County District Court. They have been automatically certified to stand trial as adults. If convicted, they would be sentenced to life without parole.

Freeman said he expects the two to be tried separately.

Al Flowers, a member of the Police Community Relations Council, said he isn't related to the Flowers charged in the homicide. He wondered what would make two teenagers commit such a crime.

Vallery Murdock, a friend of Daniels, said she was shocked to hear the details of the attack. "Lord have mercy, it's terrible," she said. "Why would anyone do that to them? I can't understand it."

She said she hopes the killers "are punished to the fullest extent of the law."

Huffman said she knows the question of motive is disturbing. "Frankly, I think it's a question for the theologians, because I don't think there are any explanations that could account for this kind of brutality by one human being to another, particularly a child," she said.

Staff writer Terry Collins contributed to this report. raolson@startribune.com • 612-673-1747 dchanen@startribune.com • 612-673-4465