Shakopee man charged in drive-by shooting that injured elder outside Minneapolis mosque

A man has been charged in the shooting of an elder outside a north Minneapolis mosque, an incident which left the Muslim community “shaken.”

The shooting occurred at about 5:30 p.m. on Aug. 19 as people were leaving Masjid An-Nur after the third prayer of the day. The man who was shot, a 75-year-old respected elder in the community, remains hospitalized.

The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office charged Yancy Hall, 68, of Shakopee, with one count of drive-by shooting and two counts of second-degree assault on Aug. 23.

Makram El-Amin, the imam at Masjid An-Nur, said he was pleased to hear about the charges.

“I’m disappointed that it happened, but I’m happy about the response,” he said.

El-Amin said the elder is in stable condition, but will likely need to undergo physical therapy.

According to court documents, the elder noticed people loitering near the mosque, who appeared to be engaging in a drug deal. The elder and another community member of the mosque asked them to leave the area.

A suspect then drove away in a white SUV, made a U-turn and then opened fire. The suspect fled the scene. When officers arrived, they found the elder with gunshot wounds to his arm and shoulder. The other community member of the mosque said he had to duck out of the way so he wouldn’t be struck by gunfire.

Court documents say officers arrested Hall during an ongoing narcotics investigation. A tracker had been placed on his vehicle, and its data showed the vehicle was at the scene of the shooting at the time it took place. Hall also matched descriptions of the suspect.

During an interview with investigators, Hall said he was familiar with the location of the shooting because he sells drugs there. Hall then confessed to shooting the elder, which he said he did “out of anger,” court documents say.

Hall’s next court appearance is scheduled for Oct. 7. He was released from custody Sunday.

El-Amin said the mosque is still evaluating its security measures after last week’s incident, and may take more steps to keep the community safe. Despite the shooting, El-Amin said the mosque isn’t going anywhere and is a vital resource for the neighborhood.

“The idea of moving and uprooting from a place that we have been established and we call home is not anything that we want to do,” El-Amin said. “It doesn’t fit our values nor is it the appropriate way for a faith community to respond to something like this.”

El-Amin and other Muslim leaders have called the elder’s actions heroic and a response grounded in his Muslim values.

“Even though there was a price to be paid, for sure, we still believe that it was the faithful thing to do,” El-Amin said.