ST. CLOUD - Two St. Cloud men have been charged in a fatal shooting last week on the city's south side.
Two St. Cloud men face charges for fatal shooting
Court documents state the victim owed one of the men money for drugs and a firearm.
June 1, 2022 at 10:04PM
Paul E. Coleman, 52, and Alphonso D. Cotto, 42, were each charged Friday in Stearns County District Court with one felony count of aiding and abetting murder in the second degree.
Coleman has been arrested and had his first court appearance Friday. A warrant has been issued for Cotto.
According to criminal complaints, police responding to reported gunfire about 7:45 p.m. May 24 found a man wounded and lying inside the back door of a residence in the 1200 block of 10th Avenue S.
The man, who had been shot in the head, was taken to St. Cloud Hospital, where he died.
Assistant Police Chief Jeff Oxton said the fatal shooting was St. Cloud's first homicide of 2022.
Video recording from the man's residence showed Coleman and Cotto near a detached garage — with Coleman holding what looked like a handgun in his right hand — and then getting into a vehicle registered to Coleman, court documents state.
After the men entered the vehicle, Coleman "appeared to fire at least one round in the direction of [the victim's] residence," the complaint states.
Authorities found nine cartridge casings outside the home.
The victim's girlfriend told police Cotto was angry at her boyfriend and had argued with him multiple times in the days before the shooting; text messages between the men show he reportedly owed Cotto money for drugs and a firearm, documents state.
Coleman was arrested at another residence in St. Cloud. He is scheduled to appear in court again on June 9.
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