Mankato Man Charged with Second-Degree Murder in Deadly Shooting

A Mankato man has been charged with second-degree murder following a fatal shooting that occurred Sunday morning, November 9th, in Blue Earth County. According to a criminal complaint filed in Blue Earth County District Court, 23-year-old A’Quan Kaishaid Laurence Thornton is accused of intentionally causing the death of a man following an argument over money. Police were dispatched around 9:24 a.m. after receiving multiple 911 calls about threats, gunfire, and a vehicle crash near Holly Lane and a nearby business in Mankato. Officers responding to the scene found the victim deceased in the driver’s seat of a black vehicle with a gunshot wound to the neck.

Witnesses told investigators that the victim had been on a video call with Thornton shortly before the shooting. During that call, Thornton allegedly brandished a “Draco”-style assault rifle and threatened to shoot the victim over an unpaid debt. Moments later, witnesses said they saw Thornton hiding near a bush along Holly Lane before firing several shots at the victim’s vehicle as it turned around, striking him in the neck. The vehicle then sped off to a nearby business, where officers later found the victim deceased.

Officers later surrounded an apartment complex on Holly Lane, where Thornton was taken into custody. He was reportedly armed with a loaded assault rifle at the time of his arrest. According to the complaint, Thornton’s girlfriend, who had called 911 earlier that morning, told investigators that Thornton admitted to shooting the victim and asked her to collect shell casings from outside. Surveillance footage reportedly shows Thornton leaving and returning to the apartment building with the weapon in hand. Thornton told police he fired “warning shots” after claiming the victim tried to run him over. The case remains under investigation.