ÍáÍáÂþ»­

ROCHESTER — Bail was set at $3 million dollars for a Rochester, Minnesota, man accused of killing a woman over the holidays.

Mustafa Rahsad Bush, 39, is facing one charge of second-degree murder not premeditated but with intent, one charge of second-degree murder without intent while committing a felony and one first-degree drug possession charge, all felonies, in Olmsted County District Court.

He is accused of killing Kimberly Robinson, also of Rochester, sometime on Christmas.

Robinson was found Monday, Dec. 26, 2022, in a ditch in Cascade Township by a woman walking her dog near River Bluffs Lane Northwest and West River Road. When the dog started pulling on its leash, the woman looked down and saw what she thought was an arm.

Contributed / Minnesota Department of Corrections

Bush appeared before Judge Joseph Bueltel on Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2023.

Bueltel denied a request by Olmsted County Attorney Mark Ostrem for a $10 million dollar bail, with Ostrem citing a previous murder conviction against Bush in 2007 and a belief that Bush might flee.

"Mr. Bush is an extreme public safety risk," Ostrem said in court.

Bush's public defender, Grant Henry, called the high bail sought by Ostrem unconstitutional, citing case law that calls into question high bail amounts based solely on charges.

Bush was previously convicted in the at Richardson's northwest Rochester home. Bush is currently on supervised release after serving two-thirds of his sentence in prison. He was freed in 2020.

Because he’s on supervised release, the Minnesota Department of Corrections will begin work to keep Bush detained despite any bail amounts that may be ordered in his current case.

While Bush is considered innocent until proven guilty, the seriousness of the allegations warrant continued detention, said Olmsted County Senior Probation Supervisor Alex Bunger.

"It just slows things down until we get a clearer picture," he said.

According to the criminal complaint in his newest murder case:

A nude Robinson was found laying on her back about seven to 10 yards into the roadway ditch and officers determined that she was dragged there feet first based on a continuous drag mark pattern visible in the snow. Police found a walking pattern from where her body was placed back to the roadway.

An autopsy showed she was shot through her neck from left to right, which appears to have caused her death. Robinson also had a contusion on her forehead that appeared to go to the bone of her skull.

Law enforcement worked through blizzard-like conditions while processing the crime scene.

When her body was found, blood appeared to have been spread along the shoulder by a snowplow.

Witnesses told law enforcement that Robinson and Bush were dating and the pair had recently got into an argument. The couple lived together in a southeast Rochester home but Robinson told a witness on Christmas Eve that she was currently staying with a friend.

Cellphone data from both Robinson and Bush show them following a similar path throughout Dec. 24 and Dec. 25. Witnesses also put Robinson and Bush together the evening of Christmas Eve and the early morning of Christmas Day.

Blood evidence was found in several locations in Bush's vehicle, including in the front passenger area, the driver's seat belt and areas of pooling blood in the passenger compartment, though forensic testing has not been completed on the samples to determine the source.

Bush disposed of several items in a burn pit at a southeast Rochester home, a witness told law enforcement. An investigator with the Olmsted County Sheriff's Office observed several burnt clothing items and glasses frames in the pit from a recent fire.

Bush cleaned out his vehicle in the garage of a friend Dec. 26, a witness told an investigator. Bush was observed by witnesses and law enforcement moving different items from his vehicle to other places for several days following the death of Robinson.

Bush came to the Olmsted County Law Enforcement Center with a family member following the transfer of items from his vehicle. Several items were found that belonged to Robinson in the vehicle he arrived in, which was not his vehicle. A bag in the vehicle contained several of Bush's items and about a half pound of cocaine.

Reporter Abby Sharpe contributed to this report.