Man Accused of Killing Passenger on Minneapolis Light-Rail Train Identified After Police Find His DNA in Spit Left at Station

A passenger was shot and killed aboard a Minneapolis light-rail train after a brief encounter with another man, leaving investigators with a chilling question: Who was responsible, and how could they identify him? Nearly a month after the October shooting, police announced an arrest — and an unexpected piece of evidence reportedly helped crack the case. The suspected gunman had allegedly spit repeatedly on a train platform before boarding, unknowingly leaving behind DNA that investigators would later use to connect him to the killing.

The victim was identified as 36-year-old Joseph Denny Nezperce of South St. Paul, Minnesota. The shooting happened on October 3, 2026, aboard a Metro Transit Green Line train traveling between Minneapolis and St. Paul. According to court documents, 30-year-old Jaquan Darrian Edwards boarded at the U.S. Bank Stadium station in downtown Minneapolis at approximately 8:48 p.m. Nezperce boarded several minutes later at the East Bank station and sat across from him. The two men reportedly exchanged words as the train continued along the route.

Investigators allege that the conversation escalated before Edwards pulled out a handgun and fired three shots. At least one bullet struck Nezperce in the neck. Edwards then allegedly exited the train at the Prospect Park station, leaving the victim behind. The train continued toward St. Paul, where officers responded at the Westgate station shortly after 9 p.m. They found Nezperce in the rear of the train, but he had already died. An autopsy and the charging documents identified a gunshot wound to the neck as the fatal injury.

The breakthrough came from surveillance footage recorded before the shooting. Police say cameras captured the suspect spitting repeatedly onto the concrete platform at the U.S. Bank Stadium station before boarding the train. Investigators collected the saliva and developed a DNA profile, but they still needed to identify whose DNA it was. They began tracing the suspect’s movements using Metro Transit’s electronic fare records. A transit card linked to the investigation had also been used on a bus in Maplewood, where surveillance footage showed the man visiting a Hy-Vee grocery store and walking into a nearby Advance Auto Parts location. A security guard recognized him as an employee, and investigators used employment records to identify him as Edwards.

Police then found another potential source of DNA. During a traffic stop months earlier, officers had reportedly seen Edwards smoking a wood-tipped cigar while driving a vehicle registered to his mother. Investigators later learned he was believed to be living at her home. On October 20, police searched the household’s discarded trash and recovered six wooden cigar mouthpieces. DNA testing reportedly showed that the profile obtained from the discarded items was consistent with the saliva collected at the train station. That match, combined with surveillance footage, transit records and witness information, helped investigators build their case.

Edwards was arrested over the weekend and charged with second-degree murder in connection with Nezperce’s death. He was being held in Hennepin County Jail on $1 million bail, according to local reporting. If convicted, he could face up to 40 years in prison. Authorities have not publicly established what prompted the exchange between the two men or why the encounter turned deadly. The investigation has instead highlighted how seemingly insignificant evidence — including saliva left on a train platform and discarded cigar mouthpieces — allegedly helped investigators identify a suspect weeks after a fatal shooting. Edwards remains presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.

Source: Law&Crime