Man accused of shooting a mosque visitor in Minneapolis allegedly sold drugs nearby

Prosecutors have charged a Shakopee man with shooting two mosque-goers on Monday, wounding one and forcing another to throw himself to the ground to get to safety.

Hennepin County prosecutors charged 68-year-old Yancy Hall with drive-by shooting and two counts of second-degree assault. Hall, who was in custody, appeared in court Friday and is expected back in court on Oct. 7.

The charging documents say authorities were investigating Hall for drug violations when worshippers caught him selling narcotics near their mosque.

Minneapolis police responding to the Aug. 19 shooting near the Masjid An-Nur mosque on Lyndale Avenue in the Near North neighborhood found people helping a 75-year-old man who was bleeding from a gunshot wound to his arm and two to his shoulder. Bullet casings were scattered nearby.

When the victim was taken to the hospital, he told officers he was shot by a man in a white SUV after leaving evening prayers at the mosque. He said that after telling the suspect he was not allowed to sell drugs in the area, the man drove away, then turned around and started shooting.

Another worshipper who was nearly shot said the suspect was just a few feet away when at least five shots were fired, forcing him to run for safety.

Surveillance footage supports their statements, authorities say. The video shows Hall's white SUV parked near the entrance to the mosque's parking lot for 20 minutes as several people approach and exit his vehicle. The footage appears to show Hall driving onto Lyndale Street before turning around and stopping in front of the mosque. Five shots ring out and a person can be seen jumping behind a vehicle before the SUV flees the scene.

The next day, authorities learned that Hall was being pursued on drug charges. The pursuer noted that Hall's white SUV was at the mosque during the shooting and that he left the area when he allegedly fled.