4-year-old witnessed father’s South St. Paul shooting, mom says; two charged in murder

Nick Ferraro, Pioneer Press
Updated ·5 min read

Marijuana was the apparent motive for the fatal shooting of a 26-year-old man last week outside his South St. Paul home, according to charges filed Tuesday.

The Dakota County attorney’s office charged Andrew Michael Fisher, 20, of Cambridge, and Tre Manuel Iglesias, 22, of St. Paul, in the murder of Avontae Troy King, who died of a gunshot to the chest. King was a father of two young boys, ages 4 and 2, and owned a company that hosted electronic dance music and hip-hop events.

King primarily grew up in the north suburbs, graduating from Coon Rapids High School, where he ran track, “which he loved,” said Bobbi Martin, his former girlfriend and the mother of his two children.

“He was more of a suburban kid more than anything,” she said, adding that King and his girlfriend moved to South St. Paul in May 2022.

King was working for a company that made bird feed and owned Clubhouse Entertainment, which hosted events at Skyway Theatre, the Minneapolis Armory and other venues. “They would do EDM versus hip-hop night with local DJs and local rap artists to give them an opportunity to shine,” said Martin, 24, of Anoka. “He was really big and well known in the rave community. He had a super vibrant personality, and made friends with everyone.”

King was a “great father, so good” with their kids, Giovanni, 4, and Leonato, 2, Martin said. “Whatever struggles he may have had going on, he always made sure to keep them weekly.”

His kids were in the South St. Paul home when he was killed, and Giovanni saw the shooting through a window, Martin said. The boy “now reenacts how it happened for everybody he sees, from where he got shot to how his body moved to the way he fell to the ground,” she said. “He watched it all.”

911 caller described shooting

Fisher and Iglesias made initial court appearances on the charges Tuesday morning. Judge Shawn Moynihan set Fisher’s bail at $1 million and Iglesias’ at $750,000. Both remain jailed.

Iglesias told investigators that Fisher was the shooter, the criminal complaints say. The documents do not mention investigators’ interaction with Fisher after his arrest.

According to the complaints, a man who lives in the 400 block of Third Avenue South told police it was just before 5 p.m. Friday when he heard someone outside yell, “shoot him.”

He ran to his front window and saw three people moving quickly down the street. Two men, later identified by police as Fisher and Iglesias, were in front, while the third, identified as King, followed them.

As the two men moved past a car parked in the street, one of them turned around and shot King, the homeowner told police. King fell to the ground and rolled in front of the car.

The homeowner said the two men, who were wearing dark-colored hoodies, got into an older, black Chevrolet sedan, with the shooter driving. He called 911 and provided aid to King, who was lying in the street. King was unarmed.

King did not have a pulse when police arrived on scene. He was pronounced dead at Regions Hospital in St. Paul.

Suspect spoke to police

Later that night, Iglesias reported to law enforcement that he was present during the shooting.

Iglesias told investigators that Fisher had been staying on his couch for the last week. He said Fisher asked him for a ride and that they went to the South St. Paul home. He said that while they were inside, Fisher took a bag of marijuana that was on the table and ran out of the home.

Iglesias said he followed Fisher, and King was behind them. He said Fisher, while standing on the sidewalk near the grassy part of the curb, shot King. Iglesias said he was the driver of the car, according to the complaints.

Iglesias said he drove Fisher to Cambridge and dropped him off. He then changed his story and said his friend, a woman, drove Fisher to Cambridge, and that he rode along. He said that during the car ride, Fisher “started talking about shooting someone” and told the woman to “keep her mouth shut,” the complaints say.

The woman told police she was at Iglesias’ residence Friday when he and Fisher arrived there. Fisher asked her for a ride to Cambridge and she agreed. He changed out of his gray ripped jeans and a black top he had been wearing. She said that during the drive, Fisher “mentioned shooting someone,” the complaints say.

Iglesias was booked into the county jail early Saturday, while Fisher was taken into custody Sunday morning and booked into jail about two hours later, according to police and Dakota County jail records.

Fisher and Iglesias face two charges: aiding and abetting second-degree intentional murder and aiding and abetting second-degree unintentional murder while committing a felony.

In a Tuesday statement, Dakota County Attorney Kathy Keena offered her condolences to King’s family, friends and loved ones for their loss.

Minnesota court records do not show a criminal history for Fisher.

Iglesias’ criminal record is made up of one conviction — a misdemeanor unlawful assembly offense for refusing to leave the area of Humboldt and 70th avenues in Brooklyn Center on April 14, 2021, during protests of the fatal police shooting of Daunte Wright. Iglesias was fined $178.

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