2 dead, 2 injured in 3 separate shootings near Minneapolis encampment within 24 hours
UPDATE (Sept. 20, 2024) — The Hennepin County Medical Examiner's Office identified both victims killed in Wednesday's shooting as 39-year-old Robert Milton Brown and 20-year-old Roland Scott Littleowl.
MINNEAPOLIS — Minneapolis and Hennepin County crews are working to clear a homeless encampment following three shootings, two of which were deadly, nearby on Wednesday.
One man was killed and another was seriously injured in an alleyway on the 2500 block of 17th Avenue South around 4:40 a.m., according to Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara. Responding officers found one man shot in the head and another shot in the neck.
The man shot in the head, who was in his 20s, died at the scene, police said. The other man, who is in his 30s, was hospitalized but is expected to survive.
Police recovered one gun at the scene, but don't believe it was fired, so they suspect a third person was the shooter.
"We do not have a motive at this time, but we do have significant information on a potential suspect who may be our shooter," O'Hara said.
Nearly 12 hours later, police say a man in his 30s died in another shooting just two blocks away on the 2500 block of Bloomington Avenue.
Responding officers found a man suffering from a gunshot wound to the head and he died at the scene.
Police say a group walked by the victim, who had been standing near a garage in an alley, when one of the individuals walked up to the man and shot him.
Another shooting occurred on the 2300 block of 17th Avenue South around 7:20 p.m. where a man suffered potentially life-threatening injuries. He was transported to Hennepin Healthcare for treatment.
Officers arrested a man a short time later near 26th Street East and 17th Avenue South in connection to all three shootings.
"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," O'Hara said.
The chief said police will clear the encampment once the crime scene has been processed.
"It is very clear that the residents from the neighborhood around here, and not just here, different areas in the neighborhood, are just really fed up with the problems associated with encampments," O'Hara said. "I heard that loud and clear last night."
Neighbors say they've been calling the city about the encampment since early spring and have witnessed drug dealing, sex trafficking and domestic violence for months.
"No, it doesn't surprise me at all, because we've had gunfire and illegal activity for months," said neighbor Linda Leonard. "There's no control over anything that's going on.
Leonard said well-meaning people have been delivering clothes, food and furniture to the encampment, but that's been making matters worse for her and her fellow residents.
"What happens is all that stuff gets dumped on my property and other properties, and then the city fines us for excess garbage," Leonard said. "People are using our properties for public toliets, the fighting goes on all night, and even some of the people living there have said, 'We can't live there anymore, we're leaving, this needs to be shut down.'"
Mayor Jacob Frey promises he's working on a new plan to save lives and give neighbors a sense of safety back.
"We've given clear direction to our city departments, to our police department, our chief is entirely on board here, to make sure that it will not be convenient to set up these encampments," Frey said.
Frey and O'Hara, two of the city's top leaders, are fed up.
"As of last week, 22% of all shooting victims in the third precinct were within 500 feet of an encampment," O'Hara said.
On Tuesday, city leaders — including O'Hara — met with frustrated community members to discuss public safety. The meeting came after a tragic few days in Minneapolis, which included a 16-year-old girl being killed in a hit-and-run and a 14-year-old boy getting shot.