Prison Sentence Set For Man Accused Of Throwing Boy, 5, At Mall

HENNEPIN COUNTY, MN — The man accused of throwing a 5-year-old boy off of the third floor at the Mall of America pleaded guilty in court Tuesday. Emmanuel Aranda, 24, of Minneapolis was charged with attempted premeditated first-degree murder.

Aranda agreed to 228 months — or 19 years — in prison, according to KARE 11 reporter Lou Raguse.

Aranda said he originally intended to kill an adult at the mall, but it did not "work out," according to authorities.

According to the criminal complaint, about 10:15 a.m. on April 19, the victim and his mother were outside the Rain Forest Café on the mall's third floor. The mother saw Aranda, whom she had never seen before, come close to them and she asked if they should move.

Instead, Aranda picked up the boy and threw him over the railing, the complaint states. He then ran but another witness tried to stop him. Aranda pushed the witness against a wall and kept running until police were able to capture him on the light-rail train outside the mall.

A GoFundMe page has raised more than $1 million for the boy who suffered life-threatening injuries after he was thrown.

Also read: Accused Mall Attacker Blames Women Who Rejected Him: Police