St. Cloud Man Jailed After Single Punch Leads To Man's Death
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – A family is mourning the loss of a 22-year-old Waconia man who died hours after he was punched in the head.
Police say Anthony Shriver was with friends in St. Cloud just after 2:30 Saturday morning, when another group of people approached them.
After words were exchanged, police say 21-year-old Travis Johnson of St. Cloud punched Shriver.
Witnesses say he seemed fine at first, but later died.
"That's terrible. Scary that it's just right there," said neighbor Jacob Marthaler.
"I feel really sorry for his family and my condolences to his family," said neighbor Tama Kaimkahni.
Investigators say Anthony Shriver was walking near the intersection of 9th Avenue and 7th Street when they crossed paths with another group of people that included Johnson. Shriver was the one who was punched in the face.
Police say Shriver complained of a headache afterwards, but didn't have any visible injuries.
"They offered medical treatment and he said he thought he was fine. He was released, and he went home with friends," said Jeff Oxton, Assistant Chief with St. Cloud Police.
But around 12:30 that afternoon, his friends called 911 saying he was unresponsive. Shriver died 10 hours after he was punched.
"Paramedics started life-saving measures but they were not able to bring him back," said Oxton.
After the assault, police arrested Johnson and he was issued a citation for fifth-degree assault. He was released but after Shriver's death he turned himself in Saturday night.
Shriver's obituary describes him as loving and free-spirited. He worked as a metal fabricator in Waconia and loved spending time with his girlfriend and his dog.
"It's a sad story and tragedy. Our hearts go out to the friends, family and community. Our job now is to put a detailed investigation to show what happened and why it happened," said Oxton.
Police said an autopsy showed that Shriver died of trauma consistent with the assault.
His funeral will be Friday in Sauk Rapids.
Travis Johnson now faces a second-degree murder charge.
Police are asking anyone who may have seen the assault that night to please contact them at 320-251-1200.
