GoFundMe For Rochester Community Leader Injured in Brutal Assault

Rochester, MN (KROC-AM News) - A GoFundMe website has been established to benefit a well known Rochester community leader and volunteer who was the victim of a brutal assault Thursday night.

A friend of the family organized the online fundraiser after the attack at a halfway house in southeast Rochester put Charles Jackson in the ICU unit at St. Marys Hospital with a serious head injury. The funds donated through the GoFundMe page will be used to offset medical, transportation, lodging and food expenses for Jackson's family.

photo courtesy Mayo Clinic News Network

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Jackson is best known in the Rochester area as the man behind (or inside) the Yammy Bear mascot. He has volunteered his time by appearing as Yammy Bear at numerous community events in Rochester and visits with seriously ill pediatric patients at Mayo Clinic and other medical centers. The GoFundMe page indicates Jackson and his wife have six children.

The man accused of assaulting Jackson is currently jailed at the Olmsted County Adult Detention Center with his bail set at $500,000. 44-year-old Malik Johnson has been charged with second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon and the criminal complaint says he has admitted striking Jackson on the head with a metal tire pump.

Malik Johnson - Olmsted County ADC photo

The court document does not state a motive for the attack.

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Filed Under: assault, crime, Rochester Police Department, Yammy Bear

Categories: Local News