2 Teenagers Killed, 3 Injured In Crash Involving Stolen Vehicle, Police Say
ROBBINSDALE, Minn. (WCCO) -- An investigation is ongoing into a police pursuit that ended in a crash in northeast Minneapolis that left two dead and three others injured.
Minneapolis Police notified surrounding law enforcement agencies of an armed carjacking Wednesday night, Robbinsdale Police Capitain John Kaczmarek told reporters early Thursday. A Robbinsdale officer pursued the suspected stolen Mercedes SUV into Minneapolis after it spotted the vehicle after 2 a.m. and tried to pull it over, Kaczmarek said.
Then the car fled with five occupants—all teenagers—inside and it crashed at the corner of NE Lowry Avenue and Hayes Street in Northeast Minneapolis. Police said one died on the scene and another at the hospital; three others survived with non-life threatening injuries. No law enforcement officers were hurt.
The impact split the SUV in half and damaged street signs and a mailbox. By mid-morning Thursday, most of the debris had been cleaned up and the street re-opened to traffic.
Floyd Pnewski who lives close by says his wife woke up to the sound of the impact, unaware of what happened in their neighborhood. He has lived there 35 years and said there hasn't been an incident like it before.
"It was kind of a shock," he said.
The deadly crash comes as carjackings Minneapolis are on the rise, outpacing the last two years.
Pnewski said the uptick in those crimes makes him more vigilant.
"I hate the high speed chases. They are so dangerous, especially city streets," he said. "I understand the concern of police, though, because this is an epidemic almost—the hijacking. But it's pretty sad that people died."
