Minnesota authorities have identified the victims in Wednesday’s shooting at a Minneapolis apartment building, where two civilians were killed and two police officers were wounded by gunfire.
The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension said the civilians who died were 63-year-old Dale Henry Spry and 61-year-old Muse A. Afrah. Officials had earlier reported that one person was pronounced dead at the apartment complex, while the second later died at a hospital.
Investigators believe both victims lived in the building where 35-year-old Carlton Neal Johnson II opened fire before being killed during an exchange of gunfire with responding officers. A preliminary autopsy found that Johnson suffered multiple gunshot wounds, and authorities classified his death as a homicide.
The BCA also named the two injured Minneapolis Police Department officers as Joseph Michnowski, who has served with the department for five years, and Yahye Ahmed, a nearly two-year veteran of the force.
The suspected gunman in the downtown Minneapolis shooting was reportedly facing eviction from the apartment building. (Ellen Schmidt/AP)
Ahmed was released from a hospital Thursday, while Michnowski remained hospitalized Thursday afternoon, interim Police Chief Bill Peterson said during a briefing.
Garrett Parten, an MPD public information officer, said one of the injured officers sustained an apparent non-life-threatening gunshot wound to the leg, while the other underwent surgery.
Another officer involved in the incident was also evaluated for an apparent non-life-threatening injury, Parten said.
Officers investigating the aftermath of a shooting in Minneapolis Wednesday. (Ellen Schmidt/AP Photo)
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Peterson identified the third officer as Ernest Boateng but clarified that his injuries were not directly related to the gunfire. Boateng was cut by glass while breaking a window of a locked police vehicle whose sirens were going off, Peterson said.
Boateng was evaluated and released Wednesday.
The BCA said at least one officer discharged his gun during the incident, identifying the officer as Liban Mohamed Ibrahim, a two-year MPD veteran.
“Investigators are continuing to determine whether any other officers fired their weapons,” BCA said.
Law enforcement responds to a shooting in Minneapolis Wednesday. (Ellen Schmidt/AP Photo)
Wednesday’s shooting began during a domestic child custody exchange involving a woman who previously had a relationship with Johnson, according to Drew Evans, superintendent of the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension.
Johnson reportedly shot the woman outside the building before going inside the apartment, where he shot another facility worker. He then went to the ninth floor, where he shot two residents who later died.
He was also facing eviction from the apartment building, according to court records obtained by Fox9 Minneapolis.
Officials have not determined whether Johnson specifically targeted the victims.