Update on Dinkytown cigar store murders

We’ve written a couple of times about the horrific double murder that took place last December in a Dinkytown cigar store. Royal Cigar and Tobacco was the scene of the late-night shooting last year that left two dead and one wounded in a gang confrontation.

Maleek Conley was arrested in Chicago for the crime back in March. He is still being held in Hennepin County jail on $2 million bond.

A number of outlets reported this past week that Conley’s second-degree murder charges have been upgraded to first-degree murder counts in the cigar store incident. KSTP-5 reports:

A Hennepin County grand jury has returned an indictment against Maleek Jabril Conley on 13 criminal charges, including counts of first- and second-degree murder, first- and second-degree attempted murder, and second-degree assault.

Conley, 26, faces a life sentence if convicted of first-degree murder.

The updated 13-count indictment, filed Thursday, makes explicit the gang-related nature of the case. A trial for Maleek on the original charges had been scheduled to begin next week.

One of the names on the witness list appearing before the grand jury is Marquees Conley.

Marquees Jaquan Conley is the twin brother of Maleek. Marquees himself has been indicted on four felony counts as an alleged accomplice after the fact in the cigar store shooting. Marquees is currently free on $100,000 bond. A jury trial has been set in Marquees’ case for February 2025.

The complaint filed in Marquees’ case implies (p. 3) that he summoned his twin Maleek to enter the store, who then immediately began shooting. Police allege that after the shooting, the brothers, plus three associates, fled to Marquees’ apartment. Police accuse Marquees of laundering blood-soaked clothing from the scene.

Maleek is due back in court on December 9.