A Hennepin County juvenile court judge has ruled that 17-year-old Jeairamiya Dewray Omar-Dear of Brooklyn Park will stand trial as an adult in connection with a north Minneapolis killing and a separate Metro Transit bus shooting.
The certification order, issued Wednesday, May 6, 2026, moves Omar-Dear out of juvenile court and into adult criminal court. Prosecutors have charged him with one count of second-degree murder in the Dec. 23, 2025 shooting that killed 18-year-old Ashantez T. McCoy, along with additional counts tied to a Dec. 19, 2025 shooting on a Metro Transit bus. The judge’s decision followed a juvenile-court hearing where prosecutors argued the case belongs in adult court because of the seriousness of the crimes and Omar-Dear’s record.
What Court Records Say Happened Inside The Thomas Avenue Home
According to court filings, Minneapolis officers were called to a home on the 1600 block of Thomas Avenue North on Dec. 23, 2025, for a reported shooting. Inside, they found McCoy suffering from multiple gunshot wounds; he was later pronounced dead.
Witnesses told investigators they overheard a tense conversation just before the gunfire. According to the juvenile petition and charging documents, McCoy asked Omar-Dear whether he had been involved in a prior bus shooting. Moments later, witnesses reported hearing shots. The identification of Omar-Dear and the sequence of events are laid out in the juvenile petition and charging papers, as reported by KSTP.
Bus Shooting Tied To Homicide By Ballistics
Prosecutors say the earlier incident unfolded on Dec. 19, 2025, on a Metro Transit bus near 36th Avenue North and Penn Avenue North, where gunfire erupted and three riders were wounded.
When investigators later arrested Omar-Dear, they recovered firearms and sent them for testing. According to prosecutors, one of those guns matched shell casings from both the Metro Transit bus shooting and the Thomas Avenue homicide, effectively linking the two incidents through ballistics evidence. Those details appear in local court records and coverage by the Star Tribune.
Arrest At Girlfriend’s Home And Prior Record
Police say they arrested Omar-Dear at his girlfriend’s home. According to charging documents, she told officers that Omar-Dear admitted to the shooting and that he had hidden a handgun in a laundry basket. Investigators later found a firearm there.
Authorities initially recovered two semi-automatic pistols and extended magazines during the arrest, according to the juvenile petition. At the time of the December shootings, Omar-Dear was already on probation after pleading guilty to an attempted-murder charge in November 2024, Bring Me The News reports.
What Adult-Trial Certification Means For The Case
With the juvenile court now having certified the case, it moves to Hennepin County District Court, where Omar-Dear will be prosecuted as an adult. Court records indicate he remains in custody while the case proceeds.
If a district court jury convicts Omar-Dear of second-degree murder, Minnesota law allows a sentence of up to 40 years in prison. The penalty range is set out in Minnesota Statutes §609.19 on murder in the second degree.
Police Still Seeking Tips As Family Mourns
Minneapolis police and prosecutors say their work on the case is not over and are asking the public to help fill in any remaining gaps.
"Another family has forever been impacted by senseless violence," Police Chief Brian O’Hara said in a statement urging people with knowledge of the shootings to contact investigators.
For the department’s detailed account of the incident and how to share information with investigators, see the Minneapolis Police Department’s bulletin MPD bulletin. Hoodline previously covered the December arrest in a piece on the Fatal Overnight Shooting.
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