Minnetonka Man Gets Six Years for Shooting Cop, Cabbie

A Minnetonka man was sentenced to six years in prison Wednesday for shooting at a cab driver and a Plymouth police officer a year ago.

Robert Burke, 23, was sentenced to 36 months in prison for each of two counts of second-degree aggravated assault, with the sentences to run consecutively. Burke will be eligible for supervised release after serving four years.

According to the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office, nearly 40 police officers from the Plymouth and Minnetonka Police departments, which responded to the incident on Sept. 19, 2010, crowded into the courtroom. Plymouth Police Officer David Anderson read a victim impact statement.

On Sept. 19, 2010, cab driver Feysal Hassan was flagged down by a security officer in Minneapolis and was told to take Burke, who was drunk, home. When they arrived at 100 Townes Road in Minnetonka, Hassan asked for the $40 fare. Burke went into the house to get money, but when he returned, he fired several shots at Hassan and his cab instead.

Police set up a perimeter. Burke went back in the house, reloaded and began firing at Anderson and his car. In total, Burke fired 17 shots that night.

Burke was taken immediately into custody by sheriff’s deputies after his court appearance.

Visit the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office website for comments made in court.