What we know about the Minnesota shooting that killed 2 officers and a firefighter
BURNSVILLE, Minn. — Two police officers and a firefighter who responded to a domestic situation at a suburban Minneapolis home were killed early Sunday during a standoff by a heavily armed man who fired at police from the home where seven children were also present.
The suspect is dead and another police officer was injured in the shooting in a neighborhood in Burnsville, Minnesota, a city of about 64,000 near Minneapolis.
Investigators are still gathering details about the shooting, which stemmed from a domestic call.
The suspect, who authorities have not yet identified, was armed with multiple weapons and large amounts of ammunition. He had barricaded himself and his family, including seven children aged from 2 to 15, in the house.
Chief Inspector Drew Evans of the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension said negotiations lasted for hours before the suspect opened fire. He wasn’t specific about the exact amount of time, but the Minnesota Police and Peace Officers Association said the standoff lasted four hours before a SWAT team entered the home.
The man shot at officers from multiple positions in the house, including the upper and lower floors, Evans said. At least one officer was shot inside. A police armored vehicle suffered bullet damage to the windshield.
“We still don’t know what exact gunfire occurred,” Evans said. “Certainly, several officers returned fire.”
The suspect was found dead around 8 a.m. on Sunday. The family and children were released. None of them were injured.
Evans said, “There haven’t been many calls for service at all in the past” at the home.
City officials identified the fallen officers as Paul Elmstrand and Matthew Ruge, both 27. Firefighter and paramedic Adam Finseth, 40, who was shot while rendering aid to a wounded officer, also died.
Elmstrand joined the police force in 2017 and served on the mobile command staff. His wife, Cindy Elmstrand-Castruita, told WCCO-TV that they started dating in high school after attending the same schools since kindergarten. They were married for five years and had two children, a 2-year-old child and a 5-month-old child.
Elmstrand was a down-to-earth person who loved his job and didn’t complain, despite terrible things he saw as part of his job, she said.
“I think he just had to be the hero. He had to do what he thought was right to protect those little lives, even if it meant putting his (life) in danger and it breaks my heart because he’s gone now. But I know he thought what he did was right,” she told the station.
Hired in 2020, Ruge served on the department’s crisis negotiation team and was a physical evidence officer.
Another police officer, Sgt. Adam Medlicott was injured and treated at a hospital with injuries that are not believed to be life-threatening, the city said.
“We are hurting,” said Police Chief Tanya Schwartz. “Today, three members of our team made the ultimate sacrifice for this community. They are heroes.”
In Minnesota, flags have been lowered to half-mast in honor of the dead. Minnesota Governor Tim Walz called on people walking past to remember the fallen first responders.
“Minnesota mourns with you,” he said. “The state stands ready to assist in any way we can.”
Hundreds of people, including officers from other departments, gathered outside Burnsville City Hall Sunday evening for a candlelight vigil for the victims.
U.S. Rep. Angie Craig said, “I can’t imagine the pain that you’re all going through, but what I can say is that to all of our officers out there, the paramedics and our firefighters, thank you for what you do.”
Area resident Kris Martin said, “It’s an important community and we feel very saddened by what has happened.”
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Associated Press writers Heather Hollingsworth in Mission, Kansas, Rob Jagodzinski and Bobby Caina Calvan in New York City, Maysoon Khan in Albany, New York and Jesse Bedayn in Denver contributed to this report.