St. Michael, Minn., reeling after death of Fargo officer Jake Wallin
A view of St. Michael Veterans Memorial on Sunday in St. Michael, Minn., the hometown of Fargo police officer Jake Wallin who was killed Friday.
Dana Ferguson | MPR News
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Audio transcript
[THEME MUSIC] CATHY WURZER: But our top story, local and state law enforcement, as well as the FBI, are investigating the recent shooting of three police officers in Fargo. Two of the officers were wounded. Jake Wallin was killed. He was from Saint Michael, Minnesota and had joined the Department just three months earlier. Reporter Dana Ferguson has more about the 23-year-old military veteran.
DANA FERGUSON: Jake Wallin was just three months into his tenure as a police officer when he was fatally shot during a routine investigation of a car crash in Fargo. The Army veteran entered into service in 2017 as a cannon crewman. He deployed to Afghanistan and Iraq from 2020 to 2021. And he was serving with the 151st Field Artillery Battalion at the time of his death. Minnesota National Guard Adjutant General Shawn Manke said, "Army Sergeant Wallin's death is a loss to the Guard family." Manke said Wallin lived a life of service to not just his state and the nation, but his community. Wallin's father, Jeff Wallin, said his son knew he wanted to be a police officer from an early age. Fargo Police shared a tribute video Saturday that showed Wallin during his police training.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
JAKE WALLIN: Throughout my entire life, I've always wanted to work in some sort of position that had purpose behind my job. And police officer is always what kind of came to me. I've tried other careers, but I came right back into law enforcement as a career path I wanted to go.
DANA FERGUSON: Minnesota Police and Peace Officer Association Executive Director Brian Peters said it's tragic that Wallin's career was cut short.
BRIAN PETERS: Obviously, he served our country over in Afghanistan and other places only to come home to face this, which is horrific.
DANA FERGUSON: Wallin grew up in Saint Michael. And community members there grieved his passing on Sunday. In his neighborhood, homeowners changed the light bulbs outside their homes for blue ones. A sign of respect for the late officer and his family. Tessa and Christopher Brown said their family was still reckoning with news of Wallin's death. Their sons grew up with him. The couple said they prayed for the Wallin family Sunday morning at mass.
TESSA BROWN: It's definitely something that hits close to home. So they went to school with him. And they've been chatting back and forth with us about their feelings on it. And all we can do is pray for the family.
DANA FERGUSON: Tessa Brown said they found some solace in church.
TESSA BROWN: And it just gives us another opportunity to pray for him to pray for his soul to pray for his family. And we've always-- we always support the officers. That's one thing that we do. When we see them parked on the side of the road, we'll stop and usually have a gift card for them and a prayer for them. And so just to know that this was something that happened that is something we pray never happens.
DANA FERGUSON: Lauren Nielsen said it was a hard loss for the Minnesota community northwest of the Twin Cities. While she didn't know Wallin, she said she was moved by the video released by Fargo Police that showed him talking about why he joined the force.
LAUREN NIELSON: I saw a video of him in training, and it broke my heart. I can't imagine.
DANA FERGUSON: Since early April, five law enforcement officers in the region have been killed in the line of duty. In addition to Wallin, the other officers include two police officers and a deputy from Western Wisconsin and one Minnesota deputy. Peters, with MPPOA, said that police officers were experiencing an increase in violence against them. And more needs to be done to hold offenders to account, he said.
BRIAN PETERS: Officers are facing dangers every day. And there's just this lawlessness that I don't know where it's coming from.
DANA FERGUSON: Fargo police said that the shooting remains under investigation by the North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation and the FBI. They said it's not immediately clear why the suspected gunman, Mohamad Barakat, opened fire on the officers and others in the area. Barakat was fatally shot by a Fargo police officer at the scene. Two officers and a bystander remain hospitalized. Dana Ferguson-- NPR News, Saint Michael.
DANA FERGUSON: Jake Wallin was just three months into his tenure as a police officer when he was fatally shot during a routine investigation of a car crash in Fargo. The Army veteran entered into service in 2017 as a cannon crewman. He deployed to Afghanistan and Iraq from 2020 to 2021. And he was serving with the 151st Field Artillery Battalion at the time of his death. Minnesota National Guard Adjutant General Shawn Manke said, "Army Sergeant Wallin's death is a loss to the Guard family." Manke said Wallin lived a life of service to not just his state and the nation, but his community. Wallin's father, Jeff Wallin, said his son knew he wanted to be a police officer from an early age. Fargo Police shared a tribute video Saturday that showed Wallin during his police training.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
JAKE WALLIN: Throughout my entire life, I've always wanted to work in some sort of position that had purpose behind my job. And police officer is always what kind of came to me. I've tried other careers, but I came right back into law enforcement as a career path I wanted to go.
DANA FERGUSON: Minnesota Police and Peace Officer Association Executive Director Brian Peters said it's tragic that Wallin's career was cut short.
BRIAN PETERS: Obviously, he served our country over in Afghanistan and other places only to come home to face this, which is horrific.
DANA FERGUSON: Wallin grew up in Saint Michael. And community members there grieved his passing on Sunday. In his neighborhood, homeowners changed the light bulbs outside their homes for blue ones. A sign of respect for the late officer and his family. Tessa and Christopher Brown said their family was still reckoning with news of Wallin's death. Their sons grew up with him. The couple said they prayed for the Wallin family Sunday morning at mass.
TESSA BROWN: It's definitely something that hits close to home. So they went to school with him. And they've been chatting back and forth with us about their feelings on it. And all we can do is pray for the family.
DANA FERGUSON: Tessa Brown said they found some solace in church.
TESSA BROWN: And it just gives us another opportunity to pray for him to pray for his soul to pray for his family. And we've always-- we always support the officers. That's one thing that we do. When we see them parked on the side of the road, we'll stop and usually have a gift card for them and a prayer for them. And so just to know that this was something that happened that is something we pray never happens.
DANA FERGUSON: Lauren Nielsen said it was a hard loss for the Minnesota community northwest of the Twin Cities. While she didn't know Wallin, she said she was moved by the video released by Fargo Police that showed him talking about why he joined the force.
LAUREN NIELSON: I saw a video of him in training, and it broke my heart. I can't imagine.
DANA FERGUSON: Since early April, five law enforcement officers in the region have been killed in the line of duty. In addition to Wallin, the other officers include two police officers and a deputy from Western Wisconsin and one Minnesota deputy. Peters, with MPPOA, said that police officers were experiencing an increase in violence against them. And more needs to be done to hold offenders to account, he said.
BRIAN PETERS: Officers are facing dangers every day. And there's just this lawlessness that I don't know where it's coming from.
DANA FERGUSON: Fargo police said that the shooting remains under investigation by the North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation and the FBI. They said it's not immediately clear why the suspected gunman, Mohamad Barakat, opened fire on the officers and others in the area. Barakat was fatally shot by a Fargo police officer at the scene. Two officers and a bystander remain hospitalized. Dana Ferguson-- NPR News, Saint Michael.
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