No Arrests After DFL Chairwoman Beaten, Carjacked In Front Of Her Kids

MINNEAPOLIS — No arrests have been made after the second vice chairwoman of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party was beaten and carjacked in front of her young children at her home in Minneapolis on Tuesday.

The Minneapolis Police Department told Patch the investigation into the attack on Shivanthi Sathanandan is open and active, but no suspects are in custody.

The incident drew wide attention following Sathanandan's post on social media calling for politicians to get tougher on crime.

"Four very young men, all carrying guns, beat me violently down to the ground in front of our kids," Shivanthi Sathanandan said in a Facebook post. "The young men held our neighbors up at gunpoint when they ran over and tried to help me. All in broad daylight."
Sathanandan's post included an image of herself bloodied by the attack.

"This is the face of a mother who just listened to her four-year-old daughter screaming non-stop, her 7-year-old son wailing for someone to come help because bad guys are murdering his Mama in the back yard, her neighbors screaming in outrage... all while being beaten with guns and kicks and fists."

Sathananda was left with a broken leg, deep lacerations on her head, and bruising.

Following her Facebook post, Sathananda drew criticism over her previous call to dismantle the Minneapolis Police Department in the days after the killing of George Floyd in 2020.

"We are going to dismantle the Minneapolis Police Department," Sathanandan wrote on June 5, 2020.

"LISTEN and LEARN from our Black siblings. And then AMPLIFY this message right now, in this moment. MPD has systematically failed the Black Community, they have failed ALL OF US. It's time to build a new infrastructure that works for ALL communities. If you are still disagreeing with that BASIC FACT, I'm not sure what to say to you."

Minneapolis voters ultimately rejected a measure in 2021 that would have dismantled and replaced the city's police force.