Gunman, 28, gets eight years in prison for shooting at National Guardsmen as they were deployed to Minneapolis before Derek Chauvin verdict

• Andrew Thomas, 28, was sentenced to eight years in Minnesota state prison 
• Thomas pleaded guilty in Hennepin County District Court earlier this week 
• He was charged with assault, drive-by shooting, and illegal possession of gun 
• On April 18, he shot at National Guard vehicle with four troops sitting inside  
• Two National Guardsmen required treatment for injuries caused by glass shards 
• National Guard was deployed in Minneapolis in run-up to Derek Chauvin verdict 

A 28-year-old man will serve eight years in state prison for injuring two Minnesota National Guard members in a drive-by shooting as they were protecting property in Minneapolis just before the Derek Chauvin verdict.

Andrew Thomas pleaded guilty in Hennepin County District Court this week to assault with a dangerous weapon, drive-by shooting, and illegal possession of a firearm, according to the Star Tribune.

On April 18, Thomas was driving a light-colored 2002 Ford Explorer SUV west on West Broadway Avenue around 4:20am.

Prosecutors said Thomas fired multiple shots toward a group of National Guardsmen stationed at the corner of Penn Avenue North and West Broadway Avenue.

One bullet went through the windshield of their military Humvee, where four Guardsmen were sitting.

One of the Guardsmen was taken to hospital and treated for injuries caused by the shattered glass while the other was treated at the scene for superficial wounds.

According to a federal complaint, surveillance video from the scene led investigators to the license plate of the vehicle, and to Thomas, the registered owner.

That same evening, Minneapolis police officers noticed a Ford Explorer matching the vehicle's description. The vehicle, which had heavily tinted windows, was seen leaving Interstate 94 West and heading onto southbound Cedar Avenue.

As officers followed the vehicle, the SUV appeared to be making evasive maneuvers, weaving in and out of lanes.

Several police vehicles were in pursuit of the Ford, which turned into a fenced parking lot nearby.

Officers arrested Thomas, who complied with instructions and was taken into custody without incident.

Thomas was driving the car with an unnamed juvenile.

The juvenile told police that there was a firearm in the vehicle, then took a pistol out of the center console.

A search of the vehicle revealed spent bullet casings.

Tests of the gun, a Springfield Armory XD-9 9mm semi-automatic pistol, and bullets revealed markings similar to those at the scene of the predawn drive-by shooting.

Court records indicate that Thomas was convicted of third degree assault by Hennepin County prosecutors in December 2017.

The Minneapolis area was on heightened alert for a verdict in the Chauvin trial in George Floyd’s death even before April 11 when a police officer shot and killed 20-year-old Daunte Wright in a traffic stop in Brooklyn Center. 

Chauvin was convicted in late April of murder and manslaughter charges in Floyd's death. He was sentenced to more than 22 years in state prison. 

Thomas has listed addresses in Minneapolis and Chicago.