Charges: Man shot woman in neck at workplace after she repeatedly rebuffed advances


A 36-year-old St. Cloud man is accused of fatally shooting a woman in the neck outside their workplace after she repeatedly rebuffed his advances, according to a criminal complaint filed Wednesday in Benton County District Court.

Michael J. Carpenter was charged with one felony count of second-degree murder in the homicide of 28-year-old Nicole M. Hammond of St. Cloud.

According to the complaint, police responded to a report of a gunshot at a textile business on the northeast side of St. Cloud just before 7 a.m. Monday. Police found Hammond lying in the parking lot near her car with a pool of blood around her head. Nearby were her keys and phone.

Two witnesses, also employees of the textile business, told police they saw Carpenter in the parking lot. One witness saw Carpenter near his car, which had the front and rear driver's side doors ajar; the other witness said they saw Carpenter leave his vehicle, then heard a gunshot and saw Carpenter jog back to his car and drive away, court documents state.

Investigators found multiple text messages between Hammond and Carpenter from the previous night where she said she "did not want to be touched by" Carpenter and told him to not make things uncomfortable at work, according to the complaint.

Multiple employees told police Carpenter had made numerous advances toward Hammond in the past month, and she had repeatedly rebuffed them. Some also described Carpenter as having a "bad temper," the complaint states.

https://www.startribune.com/charges-...ces/600219233/