A 28-year-old U.S. Postal Service worker shot his supervisor at least five times at their St. Paul workplace on Sunday afternoon, critically wounding the 50-year-old from Eagan who “miraculously” is hospitalized in stable condition, according to Tuesday’s charges.

Tewabe Semu Getachew, of St. Paul, faces a second-degree attempted murder charge in Ramsey County District Court for the shooting of Roy Varghese inside the post office at 1715 W. Seventh St. The criminal complaint says a coworker told police that Getachew sometimes refused to do his job and argued with his supervisor, although a motive was not mentioned.

Tewabe Semu Getachew (Courtesy of the Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office)

Getachew was arrested about an hour and half after the shooting during a traffic stop outside his home, just over a mile from the post office. He made a first court appearance on the charge Tuesday morning and remains jailed in lieu of $1 million bail.

The complaint

According to the complaint, Varghese’s coworker called 911 shortly before 3:30 p.m. after he returned to the building and found he’d been shot several times. Varghese told him, “He shot me. He shot me. Call the police.”

The coworker put the 911 call on speakerphone. When the dispatcher asked who shot him, Varghese said, “Tewabe. Tewabe left. Talk to Tewabe,” the complaint says.

Varghese did not tell his coworker anything about what had happened before he was shot.

Varghese, who told an officer that “Tewabe” had shot him, was transported to Regions Hospital in critical condition with at least five gunshot wounds, most to his back. He was unable to respond when asked why Tewabe had shot him.

Officers recovered 12 .40-caliber Smith & Wesson casings from the floor near where Varghese had been shot.

Police learned that Getachew had worked out of the post office earlier in the day, returning to the building at 3:14 p.m. and punching out eight minutes later.

The facility manager told police Getachew had been working for USPS since Feb. 24, and that he had every Thursday off so he could attend appointments related to his mental health.

Gun found in apartment

Surveillance video showed Getachew arrived home in his Toyota Sienna minivan around 3:25 p.m., and drove away 12 minutes later.

Neighbors told police that Getachew was always drinking and they suspected he was an alcoholic.

Police learned that Getachew continuously spoke of needing a gun and getting a license for one.

When officers arrested Getachew in front of his apartment around 4:50 p.m., he had what appeared to be blood on the lace of his right Puma shoe.

Officers and a postal inspector executed a search warrant at his apartment and recovered a Glock .40-caliber handgun and a magazine that held several rounds of Smith & Wesson ammunition. A preliminary examination of the handgun shows it fired the casings recovered from the post office.

Getachew agreed to speak to investigators. Investigators noted the smell of alcohol when he spoke and he said he drank a beer after work when he stopped home.

Getachew admitted that he owns a Glock 23 firearm and that he bought it a month ago. He said he has a permit to carry, which police later confirmed was true, and that he kept the gun in his car when he was at work. He said he put the gun in his apartment after he returned from work that afternoon.

Getachew said he saw Varghese after he punched out, and that he was not injured when he left. He had no explanation how Varghese was shot and said that he did not do it.

Investigators spoke to Varghese’s wife, who said he had told her he was concerned about an Ethiopian employee with a smaller build at his workplace. Varghese told his wife that the employee sometimes lost packages and refused to deliver packages.

“(Varghese) told his wife that he thought the employee had mental health issues,” the complaint states. “Getachew fits the general description of the man RV told his wife about.”

Varghese is “miraculously in stable condition” and expected to undergo an additional surgery on Tuesday, the complaint says.

Court records show that Getachew in May 2022 was convicted of gross misdemeanor harassment in Hennepin County District for threatening to have someone kill the owner of a senior-assisted living facility in Edina where he worked as a janitor. He was sentenced to two years of probation.

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