By Devin Fry
FARGO, N.D. (Valley News Live) – A Cass County jury found Leo Dartoe guilty Friday on all charges in connection with the 2024 shooting death of his childhood friend in Fargo.
Dartoe was convicted of intentional murder and unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon in the Aug. 23, 2024, shooting death of 35-year-old Sampson Bleh. The trial lasted four days before Judge Constance Cleveland in Cass County District Court.
The jury deliberated for a little over an hour before reading the verdict.
THE SHOOTING
Bleh was shot twice, once in the right side of his chest and once in the leg, at an apartment complex at 2202 12th Ave. South just after 1:15 p.m. on Aug. 23, 2024. EMS provided life-saving care on scene, but Bleh died at the hospital.
Dartoe fled Fargo after the shooting. Authorities arrested him Oct. 18, 2024, in Atlanta, Georgia, after nearly two months on the run.
THE CASE
Prosecutors argued Dartoe killed Bleh out of revenge. Assistant Cass County State’s Attorney Renata Selzer told jurors a rumor was circulating that Dartoe and Bleh’s girlfriend were involved with each other, a rumor Bleh’s girlfriend, Melvina Gbarsah, denied on the stand. Selzer said the rumor caused Bleh to question whether his unborn child was his, and that Bleh punched Dartoe in the face the day before the shooting.
“Why would the defendant kill his childhood friend? Well, simply put, he did it for revenge,” Selzer told jurors.
A witness who was inside the apartment at the time of the shooting, Geettoe Kamara, testified he watched Dartoe enter and open fire, identifying him by his nickname “SK.”
“When the door open, SK got inside and shot 3 times,” Kamara testified.
Another witness, Tomah Leemah, told jurors Dartoe made a threatening statement the day before the shooting.
“He was just mad, and I was trying to calm him down. He said that he was going to kill him, and tomorrow, if I hear that he’s going to die, then yeah, he’s going to do it,” Leemah testified.
Medical Examiner Dr. Wai Szeto confirmed the cause and manner of Bleh’s death.
“The cause of death was a gunshot wound to the chest, and the manner of death is homicide,” Dr. Szeto testified.
Dr. Szeto also confirmed Bleh had methamphetamine, caffeine, nicotine, and THC in his system at the time of his death, but said none of those substances contributed to his death.
THE DEFENSE
Defense attorney Justin Balzer argued the state lacked the physical evidence to convict his client.
“There’s no gun, period. There’s no gun that was found, no fingerprints done, no DNA, nothing,” Balzer said.
Balzer also challenged the credibility of the state’s witnesses, noting several testified in jail attire and were known drug users.
