NEW HOPE, Minn. (FOX 9) – Three men have been charged in the assault against a 17-year-old player during a Fridley-Robbinsdale Cooper high school basketball game. 

Charges in Cooper High School basketball game assault

What happened:

Yahya Abdul Khanyare,18, Dursa Muktar Mohamed, both 18, and Ayub Mohamed Ali, 19, were all charged with second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon and second-degree riot with a dangerous weapon for their role in the assault. Mohamed was also charged with fleeing a peace officer in a vehicle.

According to the charges, police responded to Robbinsdale Cooper High School on reports of an assault during a boy’s basketball game against Fridley. At the scene, a 17-year-old boy on the Fridley team had been hit on the top of his head with a metal tire-iron, had been punched, and was almost stabbed with a knife. 

The victim was taken to the hospital where it took six staples to close the wound on his head, court documents say. 

How the fight happened:

Court documents say that video from the school shows a group of five suspects arriving at the school in a red sedan. They’re seen taking weapons from the car into the school, including a knife and a tire iron. 

Before heading into the school, the group lingered outside, then in the lobby, “talking and conspiring together”, court documents said. 

The group made it into the gym, avoiding the ticketed entry, and Khanyare then allegedly ran towards the victim, raised his hand in the air and hit the victim in the head with the tire-iron, the charges say. Police say the video shows the victim was blindsided by the attack.

According to the complaint, the others from the group joined the attack and started striking the victim with fists and other weapons. One of the people in the group attempted to stab the victim with a knife. 

During the attack, others from the group acted as “lookouts”, staying near the exit. Ali was seen on video during the attack, appearing to act as lookout during the assault. 

Charges say that after the attack, the group went back to the car, which was being driven by Mohamed, and fled. Police attempted to stop the group as they fled, but the group refused to stop and fled from police.

Police eventually were able to stop the car and arrested five people inside of it. 

All three men are in custody. Two juveniles were also taken into custody. 

School officials say that the suspects were not students affiliated with either Fridley or Robbinsdale Cooper high schools. 

School district’s response

What they’re saying:

In the statement provided to community members, the district says, “We are grateful for the swift actions of our SROs, coaches, athletic director, and support staff, who did an outstanding job keeping everyone calm during the situation. We remain committed to maintaining a safe and welcoming environment for our school community.”