By Pat Minelli and Shannon Fiecke

A father who came to the defense of his 12-year-old daughter at Valleyfair
is recovering after being badly beaten by a group of young men.

The incident began July 5 when the girl was reportedly accosted by two men. After a brief confrontation with her father, one of the men used his cell phone to call his friends at the park for help, saying he “needed his boys back over here to get these bitches.”

Soon, the father was severely beaten to unconsciousness — including having his face stomped on and kicked — by seven men and a juvenile male, authorities allege in court complaint filed in Scott County District Court.

Six adult suspects have been charged with third-degree assault with substantial bodily harm. A juvenile male faces the same charges, in addition to fifth-degree assault and disorderly conduct. One suspect is still at large.

The 41-year-old father, who was not identified in court documents, was taken by ambulance to the Fairview Ridges Hospital in Burnsville, where he was treated
for a fractured eye socket, numerous cuts to the face and arms and bleeding on
the brain.

The victim has since been released from the hospital. Scott County Attorney Pat Ciliberto said he was informed that the man is to undergo surgery once swelling on his face is reduced. The victim has asked that his town of residence not be identified.

Shakopee police were called to the amusement park just after midnight on July 5. According to court documents, the Valleyfair security manager said security staff saw a group of males walking together who had been involved in the assault and they refused to stop or be identified.

While one Shakopee police officer rode in the ambulance with the father to get information when he regained consciousness, another officer who received descriptions of the suspects ordered a group of males to the ground.
Seven complied while the eighth ran off, police said.

The wife of the victim told police that the assault occurred when two of the suspects approached her daughter and hit her in the buttocks area. Her husband intervened, and within a minute the group of males arrived and began the assault.

There is no indication that the attackers knew the victim's family.

The wife told authorities the assault was violent, and the eight suspects took turns stomping on her husband’s face and kicking his face while he was on the ground. She and other female relatives tried to help her husband, the wife said.

The two men accused of confronting the daughter were identified in the complaint as Terry Laron Arnold, Minneapolis, 22, and Andrew Demarkis Shannon, 19, Hopkins.

Also charged were Devondre Evans-Lewis, Columbia Heights, 18; Derry Darnell Evans, 19, Minneapolis; Darris Devon Evans, 20, Brooklyn Park;
Anthony Cornandance Gildersleeve, 20, Minneapolis; and a juvenile male, 14, from Brooklyn Park.

Judging from his reading of the police reports, Ciliberto said both Valleyfair
and Shakopee Police responded immediately to the incident.