BCA: Man wanted for pregnant ex-wife’s murder aimed gun at St. Paul officers before they killed him

Officials on Monday say a man wanted for the murder of his pregnant ex-wife pointed a gun at St. Paul police officers before they fatally shot him Saturday afternoon.

Mychel Allan Stowers, 36, was shot multiple times during his confrontation with police about 1:45 p.m. Saturday near the intersection of Bay Street and Watson Avenue, the state Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) said in a statement.

The statement said Stowers drew a handgun, pointed it at officers and was shot multiple times. A gun was found near the spot outside where he was wounded, the statement continued.

The BCA identified the officers who fired at Stowers as Eric Jaworski and Matthew Foy, both with 10 years of law enforcement experience. They are on critical incident leave as the investigation into the shooting continues.

According to the BCA:

Officers were acting on a tip that Stowers was at a laundromat in the 1100 block of W. 7th Street when they encountered a man who matched his description.

The man left the business on a bicycle, and multiple squads converged on him as he reached the intersection of Watson and Bay. Before officers confirmed his identity as Stowers, the man trained his gun on the officers, and they shot in response.

Officers provided medical aid until St. Paul Fire Department medics arrived. Stowers was taken by ambulance to Regions Hospital in St. Paul, where he died a short time later. No one else was injured during the incident.

The incident was captured on video from officers’ body-worn cameras, squad cameras and at least one neighborhood security camera.

Stowers was charged last month with two counts each of second-degree murder, second-degree assault and first-degree carjacking following the killing of Damara Alexis Stowers, 35, who was found dead in her North End apartment with multiple gunshot wounds on Oct. 19. She was eight or nine weeks pregnant when she died. He called a Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office employee that day to say he had shot someone and wanted to turn himself in, but he never did. A nationwide warrant was issued for his arrest.

Police say other evidence linked Stowers to the killing, and he carjacked and shot someone else shortly afterward.

Stowers was released from prison about seven months ago for the murder of 20-year-old Antonio Sims during a drug deal in St. Paul.

Charging documents say Mychel Stowers was living at a halfway house and was granted a pass to visit his ex-wife at her apartment on the day she was killed. The couple separated the day in March he was released on parole, and Mychel Stowers filed for divorce from Damara Stowers in June.

The shooting comes about two weeks after St. Paul officers shot an armed man who was later charged with killing three people inside a tent at a Minneapolis homeless encampment. The suspect, Earl Bennett, 40, was listed in critical condition after the shooting and remains in custody.

Bennett, who was charged with three counts of second-degree murder, is also charged with attempted first-degree murder in connection with a shooting at a Minneapolis sober home.

Staff writer Walker Orenstein contributed to this report.