Overview
- Police responded to a disturbance on March 11 where 27-year-old Jontae Lee and a friend argued and Lee left on foot, and he was reported missing that day.
- Detectives searched for more than two months using canine teams, water and drone searches, video review, and cell phone and social media data.
- Minnesota BCA agents used specialized electronic‑sniffing dogs to locate Lee’s body partially submerged in reeds on the 6900 block of Lakeland Avenue North on Tuesday, May 26.
- Brooklyn Park police arrested a 22-year-old friend present at the March 11 incident on probable-cause murder on Thursday, May 28, and he is being held in the city jail.
- Lee’s family has publicly criticized investigators for delays and says they repeatedly told police the pond was likely, and officials have not released a cause or exact time of death while autopsy and toxicology work continue.