Police Shoot, Kill Man Outside Ramsey Day Care
RAMSEY, Minn. (WCCO) -- A Ramsey day-care center will be closed Friday as investigators try to figure out how an officer-involved shooting unfolded, leaving one man dead.
Authorities say two Ramsey Police officers answered a call Thursday and a suspect was shot to death in the parking lot of The Learning Lodge, on the 6100 block of 157th Lane Northwest.
No children, day care staff or officers were hurt. The day-care center was put on lockdown, and parents left work early to pick up their children.
"My boss just asked me if it was safe," said parent Tari Smith. "I said, 'I don't care, I just wanna be where my kid's at.'"
Erica Levercom said the call notifying her that lockdown call was nerve wracking.
"I was just terrified, terrified," she said. "There was a lot of traffic, and I just wanted to get here as fast as I could."
When parents got the call, they didn't get many details.
"I'll ask questions later," Smith said. "I know that [my son] is safe and that's what's important."
Cmdr. Paul Sommer with the Anoka County Sheriff's Office later answered some questions.
He said Ramsey Police got an afternoon call from day-care workers saying that three men had been sitting in their parking lot for a half hour, and it seemed suspicious.
So the officers went to check it out.
"As they approached, one male suspect got out of the car and began running on foot," Sommer said. "As the Ramsey officers attempted to peruse and engage the suspect, he pointed a handgun at the Ramsey officers, the Ramsey officers fired a gun, striking him."
There were several casings left behind. But it's not clear if the suspect fired any, or why he and two others, who were eventually arrested, showed up at the day care in the first place.
"At this point, I can't tell you if there's any nexus between the day-care center and those suspects, or if they just found that parking lot a good spot to stop," Sommer said.
The Bureau of Criminal Apprehension is investigating the shooting.
Authorities have interviewed several witnesses. It's not clear if any children saw the shooting.
The Midwest Medical Examiner's Office will perform the autopsy on the suspect.