Mpls Man Charged in Kandiyohi County Shootings

(Learfield News/Willmar, MN) — A Minneapolis man faces multiple charges, including 2nd degree murder, attempted murder, first-degree assault, and fleeing police, after a pair of shootings in Kandiyohi County that left one victim dead and another wounded.

Investigators say 25-year-old Ameer Musa Matariyeh fatally shot 55-year-old Jerome Skluzacek of New London during a carjacking attempt in Willmar on Tuesday. Matariyeh also allegedly shot 25-year-old Peter Mayerchak of Lake Lillian, who is listed in stable condition and expected to survive.

Police say additional charges could be filed for the shooting in Minneapolis, where Matariyeh is accused of firing a gun from the balcony of an Uptown apartment before fleeing to the Willmar area.

According to the criminal complaint, Matariyeh shot Mayerchak in the yard of Mayerchak’s home after arguing with him, then continued to flee westbound on Highway 7.

At Prinsburg, he went northbound on County Road 7 and headed to Raymond at estimated speeds of 135 miles an hour, then headed east to Willmar in a stolen Chevy Malibu he had reportedly taken from a Hutchinson woman in Carver County. Kandiyohi County Deputies were able to have the vehicle’s OnStar system disable the car while on the Highway 23 bypass on the south side of Willmar. It was at that time Matariyeh rear-ended Skluzacek’s pickup and tried to car jack him, then shot him. He then fled on foot into the median where the complaint says he disgarded the gun, then surrendered without incident.

Matariyeh was reportedly on the phone with Minneapolis Police negotiators the whole time.

After his arrest, Matariyeh reportedly said he wanted to die, and had thrown his life away because “Rachel had cheated on him.”