New Hope man charged with murder in fatal Brooklyn Center stabbing

Friday,

Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty announced today that Demetrius Lamar Harris, 28, of New Hope, has been charged with one count of second-degree murder in the fatal stabbing of Antonio Levar Moore, 37, of St. Louis Park. The homicide occurred Tuesday, May 2, outside an apartment complex in Brooklyn Center.

“My thoughts today are with the victim’s family, and especially his sister who he was protecting during this incident,” Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty said. “We will not tolerate violence in our communities. I’m grateful to the Brooklyn Center Police Department for working quickly to respond to the scene, identify the person responsible, and apprehend him. We will now aggressively prosecute this case to hold Mr. Harris accountable.”

According to the criminal complaint, a witness, the victim’s sister, had previously been in a relationship with defendant Mr. Harris, with whom she has a child. Mr. Harris had gone over to the witness' apartment on the evening of May 2, when Mr. Harris became upset that the witness received a phone call from another man. Mr. Harris began yelling at the witness and assaulted her.

When Mr. Harris refused to leave the apartment, the witness called her brother, the victim Mr. Moore, for help. Mr. Moore arrived in the parking lot of the apartment where the witness met him. Mr. Harris soon appeared and got into an altercation with Mr. Moore. Shortly after, the witness saw Mr. Moore lying on the ground. Mr. Harris told her to check on Mr. Moore and make sure he was okay, and to call an ambulance. Mr. Harris then ran away. Mr. Moore was transported to North Memorial Health Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. The medical examiner determined the cause of death to be sharp force injury of the abdomen.

Mr. Harris was apprehended by Brooklyn Center police later that evening after a resident of a nearby apartment complex called to report an unwanted person in the building at approximately midnight. Officers made entry to the building, eventually locating Mr. Harris in the laundry room on the ground floor and arrested him.

He is currently in custody and will make his first court appearance today at 1:30 p.m.

Demetrius Harris Criminal Complaint (PDF)