Man charged with murder in the targeting, shooting of Twin Cities woman, 22

A man from Shakopee was charged Monday with fatally shooting a 22-year-old woman in her Richfield home about three weeks ago after he pursued a relationship but she told him she was only interested in friendship.

Jose Luis Lopez Xique, 27, was arrested near his home Thursday in connection with the death of Kayli Grace Arseth and charged in Hennepin County District Court with second-degree murder. Lopez Xique remained jailed in lieu of $2.5 million bail ahead of a Tuesday court appearance. Court records do not list an attorney for him.

“This was a terrible instance of extreme, targeted violence that took Kayli from her loved ones,” Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty said in a statement. “My thoughts are with her family during this extraordinarily difficult period. Our office will prosecute Mr. Lopez Xique to protect our community and hold him accountable for his actions.”

Police made a welfare check on Arseth about 9 a.m. on June 17 at her apartment in the 7700 block of Penn Avenue S., according to police. Her family said she had not been heard from since a day earlier and had not reported to work.

Police said they found Arseth dead inside her apartment with a gunshot wound to the head.

“Kayli loved working with children and started babysitting and nannying while still in middle school,” according to her obituary. “More recently, she worked as a behavioral technician, guiding autistic children through their developmental years. ... Just 10 days before her life was taken away, she mentioned she had decided to pursue a degree in developmental psychology at the University of Minnesota.”

While attending Wayzata High School, Arseth was on the swim team and was a pole vaulter on the track and field team, the obituary noted. An older sister, Heather Arseth, was a state champion swimmer for Wayzata High School who competed for the East African nation of Mauritius in the 2012 Olympics in London and the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro.

According to the criminal complaint:

Officers entered the apartment and saw that Arseth was shot at close range.

Investigators determined she left work shortly before 4:30 p.m. on June 16 and was expecting a friend to pick her up at her apartment. The friend arrived shortly before 5 p.m., left about 30 minutes later, and alerted Arseth’s family about failing to connect with her.

A neighbor told police about hearing Arseth saying shortly after 4:30 p.m., “How could you do this to me?” The neighbor could hear a male’s voice participating in an argument and then hearing the sound of someone leaving Arseth’s apartment.

The investigators learned that Arseth and Lopez Xique recently met online. Friends said Lopez Xique would buy items for Arseth.

Police reviewed Snapchat messages and saw that Lopez Xique wanted a romantic relationship, but Arseth told him that “she was only interested in a friendship and did not feel a romantic attraction to [Lopez Xique],” the complaint read.

Investigators analyzed data from Lopez Xique’s phone and placed it about 5:20 p.m. in Bloomington, where they recovered 16 rounds of 9-millimeter ammunition, a blue shirt, an empty box of gauze, disposable gloves, shoes and a hat. Police determined he bought many of the items earlier that day while wearing the clothing that was discarded.

As investigators neared his home Thursday, Lopez Xique drove off but was boxed in by police vehicles and arrested. A police search of his home turned up a 9 mm gun and clothing similar to what he was wearing on the day of Arseth’s death.

Lopez Xique declined to answer police questions and asked for an attorney. Investigators saw he had scratches on his chest and puncture wounds to one forearm.

For anyone in Minnesota experiencing domestic or intimate partner abuse, Violence Free Minnesota recommends contacting the 24/7 Minnesota Day One Hotline. Call 866-223-1111 or text 612-399-9995.

The hotline serves anyone experiencing sexual violence, domestic violence, general crime or trafficking.

A list of Minnesota agencies, by county, which serve domestic violence survivors can be found here.