Man sentenced to 40 years in prison for role in fatal Duluth shooting

A man has been sentenced for his role in a 2023 fatal shooting in Duluth .

The St. Louis County Attorney's Office announced on Tuesday that Brandon Capone Williams-Gillard, 25, has been sentenced to 40 years (480 months) after he was previously found guilty of aiding and abetting intentional 2nd-degree murder.

Williams-Gillard was involved in the fatal shooting of 19-year-old Paris Allen on Aug. 2, 2023 , in an incident that left another man injured.

Williams-Gillard also received concurrent sentences of just under six years (71 months) for aiding and abetting 2nd-degree assault with a dangerous weapon and 11 years (132 months) for a drive-by shooting conviction.

Sanussi Bangoura, 22, who is also charged in the shooting, pleaded not guilty to the murder charge in February, claiming self-defense. He now awaits a jury trial, which has yet to be scheduled.

According to the criminal complaint, Bangoura and Williams-Gillard approached a man named Jackson Morales in a parking lot near 24th Avenue West and West 3rd Street. The two had a "contentious history" with Morales, charges say.

Bangoura got out of the car and hit the hood of Morales' car, proposing they "box." Morales then suggested that they do so a few blocks away.

He left the parking lot in his car, with Bangoura and Williams-Gillard following. They eventually ended up on the 2500 block of West 2nd Street.

Morales then called a group of friends to the area. He and one of his friends approached the car containing Bangoura and Williams-Gillard, with the friend then throwing a punch through the driver's side window.

The two began to drive away when Bangoura reached out of the driver's side window and began firing at the group, according to the complaint.

The man who threw the punch was shot in the buttocks and was driven to a hospital by Morales and another friend. Allen was shot in the head and was taken to a hospital by paramedics, where he later died that evening.

Police believe Bangoura fired most of the rounds.

“Our thoughts go out to the family of Paris Allen, whose life was cut short due to this senseless act of gun violence,” St. Louis County Attorney Kimberly Maki said in a statement.

“While nothing will bring Paris back, this maximum sentence makes clear that such a heinous act is not tolerated by our community.”