Photo: Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party
A Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party official who had previously vowed to "dismantle" the Minneapolis Police Department is now calling for tougher crime laws after she was the victim of a recent carjacking that left her beaten and bloodied.
Shivanthi Sathanandan, the second vice chairwoman for the DFL, shared a photo of herself and details of the incident, which she said involved "four very young men, all carrying guns" who "beat me violently down to the ground in front of our kids" in the driveway of her Minneapolis home.
“I have a broken leg, deep lacerations on my head, bruising, and cuts all over my body. And I have rage," Sathanandan wrote in a Facebook post.
“These men knew what they were doing. I have NO DOUBT they have done this before. Yet they are still on OUR STREETS. Killing mothers. Giving babies psychological trauma that a lifetime of therapy cannot ease. With no hesitation and no remorse,” she added.
“I’m now part of the statistics. I wasn’t silent when I fought these men to save my life and my babies, and I won’t be silent now. We need to get illegal guns off of our streets, catch these young people who are running wild creating chaos across our city, and HOLD THEM IN CUSTODY AND PROSECUTE THEM,” Sathanandan wrote. “Look at my face. REMEMBER ME when you are thinking about supporting letting juveniles and young people out of custody to roam our streets instead of HOLDING THEM ACCOUNTABLE FOR THEIR ACTIONS.”
Sathanandan had previously promised to "dismantle the Minneapolis Police Department" in a Facebook post shared at the height of nationwide protests against police brutality following the killing of George Floyd in 2020.
The Minneapolis Police Department confirmed that Sathanadan's vehicle was later found abandoned and recovered, however, there are no details available on the suspects in a statement obtained by KSTP.
Minnesota DFL Chairman Ken Martin also issued a statement in response to news of the carjacking attack on Sathanadan.
“I am heartbroken at the news of Shivanthi’s attack," Martin said. "It is my sincere hope that the people who assaulted Shivanthi are quickly brought to justice and face punishment commensurate with the severity of their crimes. My heart goes out to Shivanthi and her family and I hope their recovery from such a horrifying experience is as swift as possible.”