Pizza Driver Fighting For His Life After Saturday Morning Shooting
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- A Minneapolis pizza driver is in the ICU at HCMC. He's was upgraded Sunday from critical to serious condition.
Andrew Gryskiewicz just finished his final delivery early Saturday morning when someone approached his car and shot him in the shoulder, the bullet hitting his heart. Andrew is a delivery driver at Dulano's Pizza in Uptown.
He was supposed to work the Sunday shift, but Andrew Gryskiewicz won't be doing that for a while.
His boss, Jared Gruett, owns Dulano's.
"He wasn't involved in anything nefarious, he was just doing his job and was shot," Gruett said.
Andrew's boss said the loyal and hardworking driver had just made his last run to some regular customers.
Moments later, a few blocks away, a passer-by saw him slumped in his car. Duffy Boeser is Andrew's father.
"We are so grateful to whoever that was because they saved his life, literally," Duffy Boeser said.
Feet away from Andrew's hospital bed, his father explains his injuries to WCCO.
"He got hit here on the left side almost straight down in his shoulder, it passed through his lung, it passed through his right ventricle of his heart. The bullet is still here, it's in his liver," Duffy said.
He says surgeons say they had one minute to act,
"Right in the middle of the floor there, they had to open up his chest and reach in and plug the hole in his heart. I was told he was as close to dead as you could possibly be without being dead when they got him here," Duffy said.
Boeser complimented Minneapolis officers and paramedics as well as hospital staff.
"This team at HCMC, absolutely awesome, they saved his life, he defied the odds immediately," Duffy said.
He says his son is slowly remembering the scene and a gun. Officers are also trying to figure out if he was robbed.
"Any one of us could end up where Andrew is right now with someone like that on the street. So we need get that person off the street now, today," Duffy said.
Officers are hoping for a tip that leads to an arrest. Police say they want to hear from anyone who was near 31st and 3rd in Minneapolis early Saturday.
"He's part of a huge family that loves him very much and we are devastated, dumbfounded by this senseless violence," Duffy said.
Boeser is in ICU and will be there for a while. He didn't have any personal health insurance. His friends set up a GoFundMe page, and here is how to donate.