From the other side of a locked door, Minneapolis police officers Bryan Matlon and Daniel Oppegard could hear a little boy screaming.
Minneapolis Police Department celebrates officers who went above call of duty
Several dozen people, both sworn and civilian, received commendations for acts of heroism.
October 5, 2023 at 5:18PM
They forced entry to confront a man holding a knife to the child's throat. The 12-year-old boy was covered in blood and had been stabbed multiple times in a meth-fueled attack at the hands of his mother's ex-boyfriend. The man threatened to kill the boy as police demanded he drop the knife.
Officer Matlin deployed his Taser, allowing Miguel Torres Jr. to escape as they tangled with the suspect inside the south Minneapolis apartment last May. Once restrained, the partners administered a chest seal to Torres' wounds.
"It is because of their heroic actions, tactical proficiency and quick decision making the boy is alive today," Chief Brian O'Hara said in presenting them with the Medal of Valor on Wednesday night.
Matlon and Oppegard were among several dozen honorees, sworn and civilian, who were recognized for going above and beyond the call of duty at the department's annual awards ceremony in northeast Minneapolis.
The event was meant to celebrate officers and investigators for outstanding performance, dedication and acts of heroism that sometimes go unnoticed by the public, officials said. Beaming relatives snapped photos as their loved ones shook hands with top brass and clutched their new hardware.
Among those lauded were cops who successfully prevented suicides by calmly talking down distressed citizens from area bridges, officers who rescued an elderly couple from a house fire and those who safely disarmed gun-wielding suspects.
On just his third day of field training, Officer Timothy Davis responded to a report of a chaotic shooting in May 2021 where he found a critically injured man. Davis applied a tourniquet and worked to comfort the victim, while radioing a description of the shooter. The injured man survived 11 gunshot wounds as a result of his quick actions, said Assistant Chief Christopher Gaiters.
The top honor of the day went to Third Precinct Officer Nicholas Kapinos, who was named Officer of the Year.
Supervisors described Kapinos, a part-time firearms instructor, as a compassionate and proactive officer who conducts himself with integrity. Last year, he was credited with helping to find and arrest two armed carjackers, thwarting a home burglary in progress and evacuating a family from an apartment complex after their neighbor starting shooting through the walls.
Officer Jeffrey Werner was named Investigator of the Year for his efforts to aggressively pursue individuals who illegally use firearms and flood city streets with narcotics. Werner is a nearly 30-year veteran who serves on a joint task force with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms reviewing cases for federal prosecution. Last year he recovered 23 firearms and more than 2,500 fentanyl pills, among other seizures.
Civilian honorees included Aileen Johnson, a North Loop resident who organized several safety block clubs to patrol Minneapolis neighborhoods in hopes of deterring crime.
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