On a Thursday afternoon, August 15, 2024, the life of D’Shawn JC Porter, a 26-year-old Black/African American male from Inver Grove Heights, Minnesota, was tragically cut short in a south Minneapolis parking lot. The incident unfolded just before 2 p.m. in the 2900 block of 12th Avenue South, a mere two blocks from the bustling Midtown Global Market on Lake Street.
Porter, accompanied by a witness, had been directed to this location behind a thrift store with the intention of purchasing cocaine.
According to the witness account, the interaction took a fatal turn during the drug deal. The alleged seller, 21-year-old Angel Jesus Zavala Gallegos of Minneapolis, reportedly presented a small amount of crack cocaine. When Porter expressed a desire for a larger quantity, saying, "C'mon man, you know me," Gallegos reached into his pocket. Instead of producing more drugs, he pulled out a handgun and shot Porter in the head. Minneapolis police officers responded to a report of the shooting and found Porter with a gunshot wound. Despite their life-saving efforts, he was pronounced dead at the scene. The Hennepin County Medical Examiner's Office later confirmed that the cause of death was gunshot wounds to his head and neck, ruling it a homicide.
The investigation into Porter's death, which marked the first murder in Minneapolis for August 2024, utilized a combination of modern police work. Detectives analyzed surveillance footage from the area, which captured the suspect's movements, and were able to lift partial fingerprints from surfaces the suspect touched while fleeing the scene. These pieces of evidence, along with witness statements, pointed to Gallegos as the primary suspect. When law enforcement attempted to apprehend him, Gallegos fled on foot but was ultimately captured.
Once in custody, Angel Jesus Zavala Gallegos provided investigators with multiple inconsistent stories about the events of that afternoon, none of which aligned with the evidence gathered. He was subsequently charged with second-degree murder in connection with D'Shawn JC Porter's death, and his bail was set at $1 million. Porter's family, while mourning his sudden and violent death, spoke about his struggles with drug addiction and lamented the broader drug epidemic they believe played a role in the tragedy.
