MINNEAPOLIS, MN - The Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) announced the arrest of a man Wednesday in connection to a series of three shootings across the city, two of which occurred within homeless encampments. The department referred to the attacks as a "shooting rampage," in comments to the press. Two men were killed and a third was hospitalized but is expected to survive.
As reported by Fox 9, the shootings took place on Wednesday at approximately 4:40 a.m., a little less than 12 hours later at 4:15 p.m., and at 7:20 p.m. The suspect was found and arrested shortly after the third shooting.
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara told the outlet that crime in the encampments has posed a serious problem for the city during a press conference Wednesday morning. "There’s been way too much crime and violence this year and way too much associated with the homeless encampments," he said. "This is not a problem that we're going to arrest our way out of. And it's frustrating to the police, just like it's frustrating to the residents, that an encampment gets cleared one day here, and it pops up, you know, the next day somewhere else. It's. It's frustrating for everyone involved."
Following the arrest of the suspect he told reporters, "I am so proud and grateful for the dedicated work of our officers who worked with urgency and captured a suspected violent criminal who went on a shooting rampage today. We will all continue to serve with a sense of urgency to impact the gun violence that continues to occur at an unacceptable level."
MPD investigators told reporters that at the first early morning shooting, officers found two men who had been shot in a homeless encampment, one in his 20s and the second in his 30s. The younger man sustained a gunshot wound to the head and was dead at the scene. The second man was struck in the neck and was rushed to a hospital. He is expected to survive.
The second shooting occurred a few steps away from another encampment where a man in his thirties was shot and killed with witnesses telling officers that a group of people walked up to the victim next to a garage, shot him in the head and fled the crime scene.
As reported by Fox 9, the shootings took place on Wednesday at approximately 4:40 a.m., a little less than 12 hours later at 4:15 p.m., and at 7:20 p.m. The suspect was found and arrested shortly after the third shooting.
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara told the outlet that crime in the encampments has posed a serious problem for the city during a press conference Wednesday morning. "There’s been way too much crime and violence this year and way too much associated with the homeless encampments," he said. "This is not a problem that we're going to arrest our way out of. And it's frustrating to the police, just like it's frustrating to the residents, that an encampment gets cleared one day here, and it pops up, you know, the next day somewhere else. It's. It's frustrating for everyone involved."
Following the arrest of the suspect he told reporters, "I am so proud and grateful for the dedicated work of our officers who worked with urgency and captured a suspected violent criminal who went on a shooting rampage today. We will all continue to serve with a sense of urgency to impact the gun violence that continues to occur at an unacceptable level."
MPD investigators told reporters that at the first early morning shooting, officers found two men who had been shot in a homeless encampment, one in his 20s and the second in his 30s. The younger man sustained a gunshot wound to the head and was dead at the scene. The second man was struck in the neck and was rushed to a hospital. He is expected to survive.
The second shooting occurred a few steps away from another encampment where a man in his thirties was shot and killed with witnesses telling officers that a group of people walked up to the victim next to a garage, shot him in the head and fled the crime scene.
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