Burnsville shooting is ninth incident of officers hit by gunfire in the region since April 2023

The shootings occurred in Minnesota, North Dakota, Wisconsin and Iowa.

The Minnesota Star Tribune
February 18, 2024 at 7:57PM
A view of 33d Avenue in Burnsville, Minn., on Sunday, Feb. 18, 2024. Two Burnsville police officers and one first responder have been shot and killed, according to law enforcement sources Sunday morning. ] Angelina Katsanis • angelina.katsanis@startribune.com
Two Burnsville police officers and one first responder were shot and killed Sunday near 33rd Avenue and East Burnsville Parkway. (Angelina Katsanis/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

Sunday’s fatal shooting of two Burnsville police officers and a medic who responded to the scene marks the ninth time in barely 10 months that law enforcement officers have been killed or wounded by gunfire in or near Minnesota.

On Dec. 7, 2023, in St. Paul, Brandon Daleshaun Keys, 24, of Maplewood, died in an exchange of gunfire with a police officer. The officer, Michael Tschida, was shot in the leg.

On Oct. 12, 2023, in Glenwood Township near Princeton, five officers with a search warrant were shot during an exchange of gunfire with a man who was inside his home with numerous guns. The suspect, 64-year-old Karl Thomas Holmberg, was wounded before his apprehension and was charged with six counts each of attempted murder and first-degree assault of a police officer.

On Sept. 13, 2023, in Algona, Iowa, police officer Kevin Cram was fatally shot while trying to arrest Kyle L. Ricke, 43, of Algona over an active warrant for harassment. About four hours later, Ricke was apprehended roughly 110 miles to the north in Sleepy Eye, Minn.

On Aug. 11, 2023, a Minneapolis police officer was shot and wounded by automatic gunfire while pursuing a robbery suspect in an unmarked car on the North Side. Four people were arrested that night.

On July 14, 2023, in Fargo, officer Jake Wallin, 23, was killed and two fellow officers and a civilian were wounded by gunfire from Mohamad Barakat, 37, of Fargo. A fourth officer shot and killed Barakat.

On May 6, 2023, in western Wisconsin, St. Croix County sheriff’s deputy Kaitie Leising, 29, was fatally shot just outside of Glenwood. Leising was answering a call about a drunken driver stuck in a ditch. The suspect, Jeremiah D. Johnson, 34, of Shakopee, was found dead nearby with a gun close to his body.

On April 15, 2023, in western Minnesota, Pope County sheriff’s deputy Joshua Owen was killed on his 44th birthday while responding to a domestic dispute call. Two other officers were wounded. The suspected shooter, Bryan Nygard, 34, of Cyrus, Minn., died when officers returned fire.

On April 8, 2023, in western Wisconsin, two police officers were shot and killed in Barron County during a traffic stop in Cameron: officers Emily Breidenbach, 32, of the Chetek Police Department, and Hunter Scheel, 23, of the Cameron Police Department. The suspect, Glenn Douglas Perry, 50, of New Auburn, Wis., died in an exchange of gunfire.

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about the writer

Paul Walsh

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Paul Walsh is a general assignment reporter at the Minnesota Star Tribune. He wants your news tips, especially in and near Minnesota.

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