A Minneapolis man who prosecutors say helped set up a fatal gas station shooting has pleaded guilty, nearly two years after a dispute ended with a 23-year-old man dead. Martaveis Lamier Roberts admitted in court Thursday that he helped the shooter flee after Hussanee Abdul-Malik Harris was gunned down at a North Side station. Roberts is scheduled to be sentenced Aug. 28.
Roberts, 24, entered his guilty plea during a Hennepin County court hearing, according to KSTP. The shooting happened Nov. 25, 2024, at the Full Stop gas station on Lowry Avenue North, where Harris was fatally shot after an argument that court documents indicate may have involved a drug dispute.
Harris was struck in the back and died at North Memorial Health Hospital, the Hennepin County Medical Examiner reported. The agency listed his manner of death as homicide and identified the shooting location as 1818 Lowry Avenue North.
Roberts Drove Away Then Returned With The Shooter
Surveillance footage showed Roberts arguing with Harris before driving away, according to a previous report by KSTP. He returned a short time later with a passenger, who court documents identify as the person who approached Harris, attacked him and opened fire before leaving in Roberts' SUV.
The shooter, Ashawn Willis, was later arrested and charged in Harris' killing as well as another Minneapolis homicide. Willis was sentenced earlier this month to 18 years in prison for Harris' death, according to the current KSTP report, while Roberts' case continued toward Thursday's plea.
Sentencing Is Still Ahead For The Driver
Roberts had been charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder for his role in the shooting. His guilty plea resolves the question of whether he will be convicted in the case, but the court will decide the punishment at his Aug. 28 sentencing hearing.
The case began with an argument outside a neighborhood gas station and ended with a death that investigators tied to a passenger brought back to the scene. For Harris' family, Roberts' plea is another legal milestone in a case that has taken more than a year and a half to reach its next chapter.
