Trooper Ryan Londregan booked, released two weeks after charged in fatal shooting of Ricky Cobb II

Two weeks after he was charged with murder and manslaughter in the fatal shooting of motorist Ricky Cobb II, Minnesota state trooper Ryan Londregan was booked into the Hennepin County jail before he was soon released.

Londregan, 27, went in for processing of his fingerprints and mugshot Tuesday morning. The jail log shows he was released after 40 minutes. He remains out on conditional release and on paid leave.

His first court appearance was last week. He returns to court April 29.

Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty said her office is not seeking bail for Londregan, who is charged with second-degree unintentional murder, first-degree assault and second-degree manslaughter in the July 31 shooting of Cobb, 33.

Troopers pulled Cobb over on Interstate 94 in Minneapolis for driving without taillights around 2 a.m. They attempted to remove him from the vehicle after learning he’d been accused of violating a standing domestic order for protection in Ramsey County.

As Cobb shifted the vehicle into drive and took his foot off the brake, the car lurched forward, dragging another trooper positioned at the driver’s side. Londregan fired twice from the passenger side, striking Cobb twice in the torso.

The Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) investigated the shooting for about seven weeks before handing the case over to Moriarty in mid-September. She announced her charging decision Jan. 29.

Londregan’s attorney, Chris Madel, filed motions asking to dismiss charges against Londregan because he used deadly force to protect himself and a fellow trooper. Moriarty said the use of force was not justified and violated trooper policy.

Londregan became a trooper trainee in February 2021 and was appointed that October, according to his public employee file. He previously worked as a private investigator for a Florida-based company.

Moriarty convened a grand jury to gather testimony from State Patrol employees. She said when she got the case some employees refused to cooperate with the BCA.

The BCA made clear that Cobb was not holding a gun at the time of the shooting. A firearm was recovered on the floor behind the center console of Cobb’s vehicle.

Cobb was wanted for questioning in relation to an alleged violation of a standing domestic order for protection. The Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office issued a 72-hour request for agencies to pick up and hold Cobb. The request, which is not a warrant but grants law enforcement probable cause to detain individuals, was set to expire later that morning of the traffic stop.

The order for protection was filed by the mother of Cobb’s young children. It’s unclear what the alleged violation was and if Cobb attempted to contact the woman.

Clarification: A previous version of this story said that Ryan Londregan worked for the Vermont State Police in 2018. He served as an intern while he was a college student.