Monday June 9, 2025
A jury found Derrick Thompson, the son of a former Minnesota lawmaker charged in a deadly Minneapolis crash that claimed the lives of five young women in June 2023, was found guilty on all 15 charges against him, including murder.
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn (HOL) — A jury on Friday convicted Derrick Thompson on 15 criminal counts for a high-speed crash that killed five Somali American women in Minneapolis last year, delivering a long-awaited verdict for the victims’ grieving families.
Thompson, 29, was found guilty of five counts of third-degree murder and 10 counts of criminal vehicular homicide for the June 16, 2023 crash. Jurors also found that aggravating factors existed, clearing the way for prosecutors to seek a longer prison sentence when Thompson is sentenced on July 24.
The women — Sahra Gesaade, 20; Salma Abdikadir, 20; Sagal Hersi, 19; Siham Odhowa, 19; and Sabiriin Ali, 17 — were close friends returning from preparations for a wedding scheduled for the next day. Their Honda Civic was struck by a Cadillac Escalade driven by Thompson at more than 100 miles per hour after he exited Interstate 35W and ran a red light at the intersection of Lake Street and 2nd Avenue South.
All five women died at the scene.
The jury deliberated for about a day before returning its verdict Friday afternoon. The panel determined that Thompson’s actions warranted a harsher sentence due to aggravating circumstances — including his reckless speed, failure to render aid, and a prior felony conviction for a hit-and-run in California.
“Mr. Thompson is being held accountable, and we will do everything we can to ensure that he can never do this again,” said Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty.
Because the jury found aggravating factors, the court has the discretion to impose consecutive prison terms for each victim — potentially extending Thompson’s sentence beyond what Minnesota state guidelines would otherwise recommend.
The maximum penalty for third-degree murder is 25 years per count; criminal vehicular homicide carries up to 10 years per count.
During the trial, jurors viewed graphic surveillance footage of the collision, which prosecutors described as an explosion. Witnesses testified that Thompson's rented SUV crushed the smaller vehicle with such force that first responders could not immediately determine how many victims were inside.
“This is one of the worst crashes I’ve ever responded to,” said Sgt. Kristofer Geiger of the Minnesota State Patrol, who reconstructed the collision. Black box data showed Thompson was travelling at 116 miles per hour eight seconds before impact, and that he only applied the brakes one second prior.
Minnesota State Trooper Andres Guerra said Thompson’s SUV “went airborne” at one point, and the resulting wreckage left the women’s car unrecognizable.
Thompson fled the crash site on foot and was arrested a short time later in a nearby Taco Bell parking lot. Police body-camera footage played in court captured Thompson asking officers, “Do you know how long this is going to take? I do got things I want to get done on my Friday night.”
He also pleaded with a key eyewitness not to identify him, telling her from a squad car: “Please tell them that this is not me.”
That eyewitness, Dorinda Pacheco, testified that she saw a man exit the SUV and limp away. She later identified Thompson during a field “show-up” procedure and stood by her identification in court, saying she was “positively sure.”
Prosecutors introduced further evidence to show Thompson’s DNA was found on items inside the SUV, including the driver’s side door. Surveillance footage also showed him walking normally at a car rental agency less than an hour before the crash — contradicting his later limp.
Thompson’s attorney, Tyler Bliss, argued throughout the trial that Thompson’s brother, Damarco, may have been driving the SUV. The defence pointed to the presence of multiple DNA profiles in the vehicle and challenged the reliability of the eyewitness identification.
However, Damarco Thompson testified under subpoena that he never drove the Escalade. Surveillance footage also showed Derrick Thompson leaving the rental lot alone in the SUV. No other individual was seen exiting the vehicle at the crash site.
A forensic scientist testified that while both brothers’ DNA profiles could not be excluded, the probability of the sample belonging to Derrick was significantly higher.
Five friends were killed in a car crash in Minneapolis on June 16, 2023. They are, clockwise from top left: Sahra Gesaade, Sagal Hersi and Siham Odhowa, Salma Abdikadir and Sahra Gesaade, and Sabiriin Ali. Credit: Courtesy of Dar Al Farooq Islamic Center
The trial featured powerful “spark of life” testimony from the victims’ families. Rukia Gesaade, the sister of Sahra Gesaade, said her sister had been close to earning her bachelor’s degree and aspired to become a doctor.
“Everything was taken away from her — and not just her, but four other sisters,” Rukia said, as several jurors wiped away tears.
Burhan Warfaa, father of 19-year-old Sagal Hersi, sobbed as he described receiving the call about his daughter’s death and arriving at the chaotic crash scene. “I’m not the same person I used to be,” he said. “I’m always thinking about her.”
Sundus Odhowa and Munir Abdikadir — the siblings of Siham Odhowa and Salma Abdikadir, respectively — also testified through tears about the night they learned their sisters had been killed.
The five women were described by their loved ones as community leaders, high-achieving students, and caring daughters. Their deaths sent shockwaves through Minnesota’s Somali American community.
Thousands of mourners attended their funeral at the Garden of Eden Islamic Cemetery in Burnsville. The courtroom was packed throughout the trial, often with relatives and friends wearing black.
Yusra Ali, a friend of the victims, described the verdict as bittersweet. “Justice will not be fully complete without the maximum sentence,” she said. “Anything less would fail to reflect the magnitude of what was taken from us.”