Drive-by shooting leaves two dead in Robbinsdale

Robbinsdale police are investigating a drive-by shooting that left two people dead inside a vehicle along a busy stretch of County Road 81 on Thursday afternoon.

Officers responded to the scene on 36th Avenue near Crystal Lake around 3:40 p.m., where they found two victims inside a bright blue sedan. At least 15 bullet holes peppered the windows and door frame.

A short time later, investigators found the suspect's vehicle abandoned in north Minneapolis. Police do not believe the shooting to be a random act and maintained there is no further risk to the public.

The two victims have yet to be identified.

Robbinsdale police and Hennepin County forensics investigators cordoned off a wide swath of the roadway across from Hyvee and Lakeview Terrace Park, where dozens of onlookers gathered in shock over the brazen daytime shooting. Nearby is a boardwalk where children frequently play.

"It just ain't safe no more," a resident of the area, who asked not be identified, told the Star Tribune. "My kids could have been out here."

Grieving relatives sobbed behind the crime tape as the bullet-riddled vehicle was towed.