Minneapolis police have arrested a man suspected in three separate shootings, two of them near homeless encampments, that killed two people and injured two others within blocks of each other Wednesday.
“I am so proud and grateful for the dedicated work of our officers who worked with urgency and captured a suspected violent criminal who went on a shooting rampage today,” Police Chief Brian O’Hara said.
The incidents occurred within a 16-hour period in south Minneapolis, roughly in an area between, and to the west of, East Phillips Park and Cedar Field Park. No motive had been established as of late Wednesday.
The first two shootings, both of which turned fatal, occurred near encampments of unhoused people. It was unclear Wednesday if the suspect or victims had been staying in either location.
“This is not acceptable,” Mayor Jacob Frey said near the scene of the second homicide Wednesday afternoon. “There are moms and kids right nearby where the shooting took place.”
The first shooting was reported at 4:40 a.m. on the 2500 block of 17th Avenue South, police said. The victim was estimated to be in his 20s, and another man in his 30s was hospitalized with gunshot wounds that were potentially life-threatening. Both victims were located by officers in an alley.
Police did not detail any events leading up to the incident.
The second shooting unfolded four blocks away, on the 2500 block of Bloomington Avenue S., at 4:15 p.m. Police Chief Brian O’Hara said a man in his 30s was standing by a garage in an alleyway when a group of people passed by. A member of that group approached the man and shot him in the head.