St. Paul man found guilty of fatal 2021 Minneapolis shooting near a funeral

A man believed to have shot and killed a 31-year-old man in 2021 has been convicted of second-degree murder.

Kevin Mason, 31, was found guilty of second-degree murder and illegal possession of a firearm in Hennepin County in connection with a 2021 fatal shooting near a funeral.

“The jury delivered their verdict, and our thoughts are with Dontevius’s family as this long process nears its end,” Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty said. “Needless gun violence took him from them. Mr. Mason is being held accountable for his actions, and we will seek a sentence that will prevent further harm to the community.”

Court documents state that on June 11, 2021, Minneapolis police officers were conducting surveillance near Shiloh Temple. On that day, the Shiloh Temple was holding a funeral for a “specific North Minneapolis Street gang” that was paying respects to a “deceased associate” who had been murdered.

At some point, a physical fight broke out between two men in the parking lot, followed by gunfire.

By the time officers were able to intervene, they found 29-year-old Dontevius Catchings had been shot multiple times in the back and neck. While Catchings was brought to the hospital, he later died of his injuries.

Witnesses to the shooting stated that Mason and Catchings got into a fist fight following the funeral. The fight, according to those who knew the two, said it was because Mason would not return a gun Catchings had lent him.

After winning the fight, Catchings reprotedly said he and Mason were still friends and began walking away, which is when Mason reprotedly stood up and shot catching multiple times in the back.

Following the shooting, Mason fled Minnesota and was later arrested in Indinna; however, on Sept. 27, 2023, he was accidentally released from a detention center due to a “faulty records review by civilian staff.”

Mason was found a few days later in South St. Paul and taken into custody.

His sentencing is set for Dec. 17.
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