Police: Suspect threatened man who refused to join his 'group'
A Rochester man with a lengthy criminal history is accused of threatening someone with a knife because he wouldn't join the suspect's "group."
Police were called to the area of Fifth Avenue and 14th Street SE just after 3 p.m on Thursday. When officers arrived, a 22-year-old man told them the suspect, later identified as 32-year-old Bashir Farah, approached him while he was helping his brother move some furniture.
Farah was upset the victim was "not part of his group," according to a police report. Farah was accompanied by several other Somali men.
The victim, also a Somali male, reportedly grabbed a tire iron out of the vehicle to defend himself. Farah fled the scene, but authorities located him a short time later in a nearby apartment building. He faces a felony charge for second-degree assault.
According to the report, the victim has only lived in Rochester a couple weeks. In that time, Farah has been "territorial" and acted like he's "the boss" of the neighborhood, the victim told police.
Farah has a lengthy criminal record dating back to 2001. According to court records, his history includes convictions for attempted robbery, DWI and assaulting a peace officer.
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(Cover photo: File / Alan Cleaver / Creative Commons)
