Transcripts of Tragic Minnesota YouTube Stunt Released
ADA, Minn. (AP) — A transcript released Friday shows a woman tried to resist as her boyfriend urged her to shoot him for a videotaped stunt in Minnesota that ended in his death.
The Norman County prosecutor also released portions of the video Pedro Ruiz III took with his girlfriend, Monalisa Perez, at their home in Halstad last year.
Ruiz, 22, shows off the .50-caliber Desert Eagle handgun and the bullet he wanted Perez to fire at him as he held a hardcover encyclopedia against his chest. The couple planned to post the video on YouTube.
In the video, Ruiz calls himself "the crazy Pedro" and said he wanted to see if a .50-caliber bullet can go through a book.
"The most trustworthy person that I trust in this world is my girlfriend, Monalisa," Ruiz said in the video "So if I die, I'm pretty much ready to go to heaven right now."
According to the transcript, Perez pleads with her boyfriend "I can't do it, babe. I'm so scared." Ruiz tells her, "As long as you hit the book, you'll be fine. Come on."
"Babe, I'm not doing this, I can't," Perez said.
"Come on," Ruiz replied.
"Babe, if I kill you what's gonna happen to my life. Like no this isn't OK," she said. "I don't want to be responsible."
The bullet went through the book, killing Ruiz. Video of the shooting and aftermath were not released by Norman County Attorney James Brue, who called those portions "clearly offensive to common sensibilities."
Perez, 20, of Redfield, South Dakota, was sentenced earlier this year to 180 days in jail for second-degree manslaughter. Her sentence will be served in 30-day installments each year for six years.