Man Accused of Dragging Army Recruiters Appears in Court

A 52-year-old Minneapolis man accused of hitting two uniformed Army recruiters with his 1994 Jeep Cherokee—and dragging one man for nearly three-quarters of a mile—remains in jail on $150,000 bail following a pretrial hearing Tuesday.

Enrico Taylor now faces five felony charges:

• First-degree assault,
• Second-degree assault and
• Three counts of criminal vehicular operation.

On Tuesday, Taylor withdrew his demand for a speedy trial and the judge set a motion hearing for 1:30 p.m. Nov. 20.

Taylor confessed to Roseville detectives that he hit two pedestrians and fled the scene Sept. 17 at the Crossroads of Roseville Shopping Center on County Road B2, according to police. Taylor said he panicked, heard screaming coming from his vehicle, stopped and tried to pull the pedestrian from beneath his Jeep Cherokee.

The 42-year-old victim disputes that, though. He says the vehicle stopped at one point and that the driver got out to look beneath the vehicle but that the driver never tried to help him, police said.

The man was dragged to the intersection of County Road B2 and Prior Avenue before he was able to free himself from the undercarriage of the vehicle. He had a “severe, non-life threatening abrasion injuries” to his body and a broken leg.

The other recruiter, a 29-year old Brooklyn Center man, went over the top of the Cherokee and was able to walk away with injuries that didn’t require immediate medical attention.