Jury Deliberations Underway in Rochester Murder Trial

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An Olmsted County jury heard closing arguments this morning in the trial of a Rochester man charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder.

Deliberations in the case began late this morning as the jurors moved behind closed doors to debate the guilt or innocence of 32-year-old Muhidin Abukar. He is one of two men charged with being involved in the "execution-style" shooting death of 28-year-old Garad Roble.

He was found dead along a rural road on the southeast edge of Rochester
in the early morning of March 5, 2019. An autopsy later determined he had been hit by nearly a dozen gunshot wounds. Over the past week, prosecutors presented the jury with evidence involving cell phone tracking technology and witness statements in an effort to link Abukar to the murder.

The second man charged in the case, 25-year-old Ayub Iman, is currently scheduled to stand trial on the same murder charge next February.