An unarmed black man who worked as a delivery driver for DoorDash, Amazon, and other companies was fatally shot by a white man following a traffic incident in Minnesota.
24-year-old Anthony Trifiletti has been charged with second-degree murder for killing 39-year-old Doug Lewis, according to a report from regional outlet City Pages.
An interview between Trifiletti and investigators, cited in a separate Star Tribune report, included claims from Trifiletti regarding the argument that ultimately saw him deciding to fire multiple shots at Lewis, who was later taken to Regions Hospital, where he died while in surgery.
According to Trifiletti, he and Lewis got into an argument following a fender-bender. While Trifiletti further alleged that his decision to shoot Lewis was due to him fearing for his life, witness accounts reportedly do not back this up. And Valerie Lewis, the victim's sister, argues that Trifiletti's attempt at a self-defense rationalization for the shooting is only happening as part of an effort to obscure what actually happened.
"White people can get away with killing a black man by saying they were afraid," she said, adding that Trifiletti—who's said to still be in jail in lieu of $1 million bail—has "brought great pain" to their family.
