Superior police announced the arrests of five suspects Wednesday in the slaying of a 20-year-old man who was shot inside an Allouez neighborhood home on Tuesday.


Garth Velin suffered at least one gunshot wound to the chest just before 7 p.m. inside his residence at 3706 E. First St. While the arrests may answer a major question of "who" in the case, for friends of the victim it still does not address the question of why anyone would kill someone they describe as friendly and helpful to those around him.

The suspects arrested were between the ages of 17 and 20 years old. Police identified them in a press release as Chance W. Andrews, 17, of Superior; Teah J. Phillips, 17, of Superior; Kyham L. Dunn, 20, of Duluth; Kane M. Robinson, 20, of Duluth; and Dallas E. Robinson, 18, of Duluth. Criminal complaints are expected to be formally filed Thursday.

Velin's girlfriend, who was not identified by police, was the only other person inside the residence at the time of the shooting, Superior Police Chief Charles LaGesse said. She was upstairs and heard a "banging sound and commotion" from below.

"She went downstairs and found Velin on the floor and unresponsive," LaGesse said at a Wednesday afternoon news conference. "She observed blood on Velin, and when she lifted his shirt, she observed what she felt was a gunshot wound to his chest."

Officers responded to the home and moved Velin from the front entryway to a safe location across the street while the house was searched. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

LaGesse said police are continuing to follow leads, but he declined to say if investigators have determined a motive in the case. He did say the girlfriend is not a suspect, stating that she was the "closest thing to a witness to the event."

"Investigative leads are being developed and followed up on," LaGesse said. "However, it is premature to release information on those leads."

An autopsy was scheduled to be performed Thursday to determine the official cause of death.

Friends of Velin, a 2012 graduate of Superior High School, reacted with shock to the news of his death, questioning why anybody would have a motive to kill him.

Morgan Gramstrup said she knew Velin most of her life. She grew up in Superior and their parents were good friends, and Velin was always "checking up on me" to make sure she was doing well in school, and in life.

"He was like a big brother to me. He was the kind of guy who, if something was wrong in your life, he knew how to fix it,'' Gramstrup told the News Tribune. "You look for a person to make you happy and feel good about who you are in this world, and Garth was just that person.

"He was always happy, always the life of the party, always smiling," Gramstrup added. "Everyone who knew him liked Garth. He didn't have any enemies."

Velin's parents, Paul and Deborah, have now lost two sons at an early age, she said. Garth's older brother, Gunnar, died unexpectedly in November 2010, at age 21.

"I talked to them today, and they are doing about as well as anyone could in this situation,'' Gramstrup said.

Taavi Mattson, 18, of Superior is two years younger than Velin, but the two bonded through baseball. They played together through Little League and the Babe Ruth League, coached by Paul and Gunnar Velin.

"He had the heart for baseball," Mattson said. "He was really into the game and he knew what he was talking about. I was young; he was an older kid and he made me feel like I was part of the team, like I should be there and that I was good for the team."

Mattson called Velin a "genuinely nice guy."

"He could always put a smile on your face," he said. "I didn't know anybody who didn't like him. He was the kind of guy you wanted to be around."

Gramstrup said Velin lived with a female roommate but that the two were not romantically involved. She said Velin was dating another woman and had recently been promoted at his job at Perkins.

Gramstrup said she can't imagine Velin being mixed up in anything that would lead to his violent death.

"We talked at Burger King about a month ago and everything was fine. He was doing great,'' she said. "I can't imagine why anyone would do something like this. Whatever happened, there's no way he did anything to deserve this."

LaGesse expressed sympathy for Velin's family members and asked that their privacy be respected. He acknowledged the seriousness of the incident, but he stressed that investigators do not believe the crime was random.

"Crimes of this magnitude are alarming and may cause community members to be concerned for their safety, and that's natural and proper," he said. "However, we have nothing to indicate that this was a random act of violence that places all of the community at continued danger."