Acquittal in St. Paul light rail death

Published 7:57 am Thursday, January 25, 2018

ST. PAUL — A defendant accused of causing the death of a man at a St. Paul light rail station has been acquitted of murder.

A Ramsey County jury deliberated less than five hours Tuesday before finding 20-year-old Shawn Bellazan not guilty of second-degree murder and aggravated robbery.

The St. Paul Pioneer Press says 68-year-old Gebremedhin Tela died of a blood clot days after an altercation with Bellazan and another man, Cavis Adams, on the Green Line last fall. Video footage shows Tela taking a swing at Bellazan and Bellazan repeatedly punching Tela and taking his cellphone. Prosecutors argued Bellazan and Adams used force that eventually resulted in Tela’s death.

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Adams’ trial is scheduled for this spring.