Victim Of Fatal Burnsville Shooting Identified
BURNSVILLE, Minn. (WCCO) -- A Twin Cities man could face murder charges after a shooting in his Burnsville home left one person dead.
Robert Michael Thomas, 64, was arrested Sunday afternoon, after Burnsville Police found the body of James Edward Koenig, 38, inside Thomas' house, who had been shot.
The shooting happened at a home on the 14000 block of Plymouth Avenue.
It was dinner time when Sandra Mills heard a noise on the other side of her dining room wall.
"I didn't hear anything, but a thump," Mills said, who is a neighbor of Thomas.
That same wall separates her home from Thomas' garage.
"He uses his garage like a man cave. They were watching the football game," she said.
Within minutes, Sandra and her kids would see police cars lined up outside her home.
"It was quite a commotion until 4 this morning," she said.
Investigators believe Thomas shot and killed Koenig during a fight in his home. The argument happened just minutes after the Packers-Bears game, but police say the fight had nothing to do with the outcome of the NFC Championship.
The news took neighbors by surprise. They only know Thomas as a pleasant, friendly father of a young boy.
"Was shocked and sad for the boy, young boy, sad for him," said Paula Elstrom, a neighbor.
Still, there are many questions that remain.
"Whatever happened had to be pretty bad to have him escalate to that point," said Mills.
