Following a year-long dispute, Minnesota resident Davis Moturi allegedly shot his neighbor in the neck while gardening

A Minnesota man was shot in the neck while cleaning up his yard by a 54-year-old neighbor who warned him not to touch a specific tree on his property amid nearly a year of “racial threats.”

Surveillance footage shows Davis Moturi working outside his Minneapolis home, trimming a tree, when a bullet hit him in broad daylight.

Police alleged that Moturi’s neighbor, John Sawchak, pulled the trigger after months of rising tensions between the neighbors.

“The bullet went through my neck and then back into my spine,” Moturi said KARE 11.

The criminal complaint obtained by CNN said Moturi, who is black, claimed in October 2023 that his white neighbor used “racially charged language” and in May called him a “black bastard.”

Moturi reportedly called the police to report at least 19 incidents of threats, hate speech and harassment from Sawchak, but nothing was done.

Moturi told police his neighbor threatened to shoot him “if he touched a particular tree.” While Moturi was cutting down that tree, Shawchak allegedly shot his neighbor from an open upstairs window.

Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara acknowledged that his department “failed” to prevent the shooting and agreed that officers should have responded much earlier before Moturi was shot on Oct. 23, the website added.

“We failed this victim 100%,” Chief O’Hara admitted.

Police knew Sawchak had mental problems and had been trying to arrest the alleged gunman for at least six months, according to Chief O’Hara.

“We were trying to safely place this individual in custody, which would mean taking him out of his home while he is not near a gun or any other weapons,” Chief O’Hara added.

On October 28, SWAT and the Special Tactics Unit broke out the windows of the accused shooter’s home after the behavioral threat team, a psychiatrist and his family members failed to persuade him to leave the home.

When police entered the home, Sawchak surrendered and was arrested.

Sawchak faces several charges, including attempted murder, stalking and harassment.

On Halloween, the community gathered at a Minneapolis City Council meeting to share their outrage over the police response.

The Minneapolis City Council passed a resolution calling for the city auditor to conduct an independent review of the city’s involvement and delayed response to the attack.

“We have an obligation to find out how and why this lapse occurred, and then take full responsibility for the individual entities or city policies that allowed it to happen to prevent it from happening again,” Minneapolis City Council member Robin Wonsley said during the debate. meeting on October 31.

Prosecutors say race played a role in the crime.

“I don’t call the police for fun. I’m calling because I want my family to be safe,” Moturi told KARE 11 from his hospital bed.

“The safety of our residents is a top priority, and any form of violence or hate speech is completely unacceptable and inconsistent with who we are as a community,” spokesman for Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey – wrote in the statement.