Sheriff warns Somali gang violence is rising in Minnesota's ethnic enclaves

Ramsey County Sheriff Bob Fletcher called out the growing wave of gang violence involving Somali youth in Minnesota, saying authorities need to address the issue before it worsens.

Fletcher shared a video Monday alongside gang investigators discussing what his office says are 12 Somali gangs operating in the state. He said the issue has been monitored for about two years and has increased significantly. “Why speak out now? It’s obviously a problem,” Fletcher said in an interview this week with the Minnesota Star Tribune. “We’ve been monitoring it for two years, and it’s exponentially increasing.”

The sheriff said his office estimates roughly 300 people out of Minnesota’s Somali population of about 100,000 are involved in gangs.

Ramsey County Attorney John Choi said there has been an increase in retaliatory violence between groups of teenagers and young adults in the Twin Cities.  Fletcher’s office provided the Minnesota Star Tribune with a list of more than 100 criminal cases dating back to 2023 that investigators believe are connected to the gangs. The cases include allegations involving illegal firearms, robberies, stabbings, and fatal shootings.

The sheriff said some incidents have involved large-scale shootings between rival groups, including violence at public events. A recent shooting in Minneapolis killed a Somali soccer coach who Fletcher said had previously been involved with a gang but had changed his life after moving.

Minneapolis police Sgt. Garrett Parten said investigators were not confirming any gang connections in that case: “We will not comment on investigative details or speculate about potential gang or group involvement until all facts are confirmed” in the shooting.

The comments drew criticism from some Somali community leaders and the Council on American-Islamic Relations Minnesota (CAIR-MN), who said gang violence should be addressed but argued Fletcher’s comments risked unfairly portraying Somali youth as dangerous.

“This kind of rhetoric is not only wrong, it is dangerous,” said Minneapolis City Council member Jamal Osman. “It targets an entire community, creates fear, and makes it harder to build the trust we need to actually keep people safe.”

Fletcher said his goal is prevention and helping young people leave gangs.

“If you stay in denial, you’ll never fix the problem,” Fletcher said. “My goal has always been to help these kids change course.”

Ramsey County Deputy Ben Seidl, a gang investigator, said many recent shootings investigated by his team have involved Somali gangs, though other gangs also operate in the area.

“It’s an ugly truth at this point, and if we don’t talk about it, what’s going to change?” Seidl said.

The sheriff’s office plans to hold a community conference on July 21 focused on gang violence.