Former Bemidji man dies after confronting vehicle thieves in Minneapolis
A former Bemidji man died after confronting vehicle thieves in south Minneapolis, a fatal case that shows how quickly a theft can turn violent.
When someone is trying to steal a vehicle, the safest move is not to confront them. The death of Amos Ferrier, a former Bemidji man and veteran, shows how fast a theft can turn deadly when a suspect is trying to flee.
Ferrier, 38, died Sunday, May 17, after injuries he suffered during a confrontation around 1:35 p.m. Friday, May 15, in the 5400 block of 43rd Avenue South in south Minneapolis. Minneapolis police said he was found unconscious in the street and taken by ambulance to Hennepin Healthcare with life-threatening injuries. Police later described the case publicly as an auto theft turned homicide.
Investigators said Ferrier saw two people trying to steal his vehicle and confronted them. As the suspects fled in their own vehicle, Ferrier was struck. The crash of those few seconds turned a theft attempt into a fatal assault and left a veteran-focused gathering on the city’s south side wrapped in grief.
Ferrier had been at Every Third Saturday, the nonprofit that runs Rick’s Coffee Bar, for a Warrior’s Return graduation ceremony when the incident happened. He served as the Internship Program Director there and had become a familiar presence to veterans trying to rebuild after combat. Friends and coworkers remembered him as a connector who helped other veterans readjust to civilian life.
His death also struck Bemidji, where Ferrier grew up and attended Bemidji High School. An obituary said Amos Barrett Ferrier was a combat-decorated Army medic who was recognized for saving multiple lives, with deployments to South Korea, Afghanistan and Djibouti. He also served in the Minnesota and Colorado National Guard and, in recent years, found renewed purpose through Every Third Saturday.
The impact was visible outside Rick’s Coffee Bar, where flowers, flags and a handmade white cross appeared after his death. For the people who knew Ferrier in Bemidji, in the Guard, or through the veteran community in Minneapolis, the memorial marked the loss of a man whose life was defined by service and by helping others.
Two people were charged May 22 in Hennepin County District Court with aiding an offender after the fact. Reporting identified them as Janaya Samiah Frost, 18, and Jordan Frost, 20, siblings from St. Paul. A third suspect, a 19-year-old woman, was reported to be in custody but not yet charged. The case now stands as a stark warning: when thieves are already in motion, a confrontation can cost a life.
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