August 10, 2016

Three arrests made in shooting investigation

Three arrests have been made as the Rapid City Police Department and Pennington County Sheriff’s Office continue to investigate a shooting that occurred in Rapid City. Investigators have narrowed down the timeframe of the shooting to have occurred sometime between 11:00 p.m. on August 7th and 2:00 a.m. on August 8th.

The investigation began after local law enforcement was called to Rapid City Regional Hospital in the early morning hours of August 8th for a report of a male subject who had arrived at the hospital for treatment of a gunshot wound to the abdomen. The subsequent investigation revealed that the injured subject was in the passenger seat of a Nissan Maxima involved in a shooting incident that occurred in the 1800 block of Haines Avenue. It has been determined that the driver of the Maxima, identified as 41-year-old Fred Brassfield of Rapid City, fired several shots at the occupants of a Pontiac Grand Prix.

No one was injured by the gunshots fired by Brassfield.

Brassfield then assaulted one of the occupants of the Grand Prix before stealing the vehicle. Brassfield drove the Grand Prix to an alley just north of Central High School and left it there before being picked up by the second occupant of the Maxima. Brassfield then drove the Maxima from the scene.

After fleeing the scene, the gunshot victim is believed to have shot himself accidentally while sitting in the passenger seat of the Maxima, again being driven by Brassfield. He remains in the hospital in serious but stable condition.

Brassfield was arrested in Sioux Falls on the evening of August 9th for the offenses of Aggravated Assault, Discharge of a Firearm at a Motor Vehicle, and First Degree Robbery. The arrest is the result of cooperation between local law enforcement and the Sioux Falls Police Department.

Local law enforcement has reason to believe two other suspects are connected to the shooting incident on Haines Avenue. They are 34-year-old Paul Roubideaux and 33-year-old Joshua Wahle, both of Rapid City. Each has been arrested on one charge of Ingestion of a Controlled Substance, with other charges pending.

Investigators have determined the shooting to be the direct result of a dispute over methamphetamine sales activity in Rapid City.

“In less than a month, Rapid City has been the location of two highly-dangerous shootings connected to the methamphetamine epidemic,” said Captain James Johns of the RCPD Criminal Investigation Division. “This investigation remains active, and we believe more charges are likely pending against these individuals as the case evolves.”

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