Derrick Thompson sentenced to 59 years in prison, admits to killing 5 women in Minnesota crash

Jeff Day, Star Tribune on Jul 24, 2025

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MINNEAPOLIS — After he finally admitted that he was driving the car that killed five young women in a crash two years ago in Minneapolis, Derrick John Thompson was sentenced to nearly 59 years in prison Thursday morning in Hennepin County District Court.

He will serve five consecutive third-degree murder sentences for each of his victims: Sabiriin Ali, Sahra Gesaade, Salma Abdikadir, Sagal Hersi and Siham Adam.

Before being sentenced, Thompson spoke for the first time publicly since the 2023 crash and begged for forgiveness, saying he never wanted to go to trial but had no choice. He turned to the gallery, filled with family members and friends of the victims, and said he was sorry for what he did. “There is not a day I don’t ask God why he didn’t take me instead and let your beautiful angels still be here,” Thompson said.

The family members and friends of his victims who spoke at the sentencing, extended no forgiveness. They tore into Thompson for his selfishness in waiting until sentencing to admit his crimes and putting their families through two criminal trials.

Last month, Thompson was found guilty of 15 felonies — five of third-degree murder, 10 of criminal vehicular homicide — following a weeklong trial and jury deliberations that lasted over two days.

He was called a “loser” and an inhumane person who lacked remorse and whose decisions that led to the crash were anything but an accident. Thompson drove a rented Cadillac Escalade more than 110 miles per hour down Interstate 35W before taking an exit onto Lake Street, blowing through a red light and obliterating a Honda Civic carrying the five young women.

“I hope reality suffocates you for the rest of your life,” said Sundus Odhowa, Siham’s older sister. “You should never know freedom again. You should never know peace.”

Sundus Ali, Sabiriin’s older sister, said whatever responsibility Thompson admitted to on Thursday was calculated and lacked honesty.

“For over two years, he refused to take responsibility for what he did, sitting there with that smug look on his face,” she said, turning to look at Thompson. “He put our family through so much. He just sits there looking like that.”

The only defense Thompson presented in the trial was that his brother, Damarco Thompson, was driving the car that crashed into the women. Prosecutors then called Damarco Thompson to the stand, who testified he was not in the car and his brother was driving.

Judge Carolina Lamas was asked by the team of prosecutors to sentence Thompson consecutively, and that his criminal history in California — where Thompson was convicted of a different hit-and-run crime that severely injured a woman — be taken into account.

Thompson’s attorney, Tyler Bliss, said the sentences should be concurrent because it was a single act involving multiple victims and was not intentional murder. He said prosecutors couldn’t point to a single case in Minnesota history to provide precedent for consecutive sentences.

Lamas sided with the county, then sentenced Thompson for each of his victims.

The five young women were all between the ages of 17 and 20. They were recalled as deeply invested in the Somali community and devout Muslims who volunteered at the Dar Al-Farooq Islamic Center. They were graduating from high school and college and entering the prime of their lives the night they were killed.

They had all grown up together — family by birth, friends by choice. Their deaths have left homes once vibrant with laughter broken. Families have settled into a painful silence. In their community, weddings, graduations and successes are left with tinges of heartbreak.

“We’re left carrying this heavy grief,” Sundus Ali said. “All we have left is memories and the last memory we shared together as a family was their funeral.”

Yusra Ali, one of the victims closest friends, asked Lamas to give Thompson the strongest possible sentence.

“These were girls with big hearts, big dreams and bright futures,” Ali said. “Their loss is not just emotional, it’s deeply personal to everyone who knew them.”

On Thursday, Thompson said he walked into court everyday wanting to make eye contact with the family members of his victims, hoping they could glimpse in his eyes that he was sorry.

“I am truly sorry to the families of these five beautiful young women,” he said. “Sorry for the heartbreak I have caused with my actions.”

The decision to stand trial was a calculated risk for Thompson. Last year, prosecutors offered him a deal: If he pleaded guilty to five counts of criminal vehicular manslaughter, he would be sentenced to between 32 and 38 years in prison. In Minnesota, he would have had the opportunity for supervised release after 21 to 25 years with good behavior.

Under Minnesota sentencing guidelines, Thompson could now potentially be out of prison in 39 years with an additional 20 years on probation. He is also awaiting sentencing in federal court after he was convicted on drug and gun charges related to this case.

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