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Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said an FBI SWAT team and a U.S. Marshals Service task force arrested a suspect Thursday afternoon in connection with a shooting this week that left four people dead and another with life-threatening injuries. O’Hara said the man was taken into custody near the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood. 

O’Hara said the 34-year-old is suspected in the shooting late Tuesday near 25th Street East and Bloomington Avenue South. A 17-year-old boy, a 20-year-old woman and a 27-year-old man died at the scene. Minneapolis police announced early Friday that a fourth victim, a 28-year-old man, died from his injuries at a hospital. Another 20-year-old woman was seriously injured.

“We have not ruled out that others may be involved in some way or others may have information that may be material to the investigation. But we believe this person is responsible for shooting those people,” O’Hara said at a Thursday evening news conference.

Authorities said the man was booked into jail, but did not make charging documents available. 

The second incident happened around 1 p.m. Wednesday, when a man in his 30s was fatally shot outside an apartment building on the 2100 block of Cedar Avenue S. O’Hara said that shooting was likely related to the shooting Tuesday.

The latest incident happened at about 7:45 p.m. Wednesday near Lake Street and 15th Avenue S. Police said officers found an injured man in his 50s; he later died at a hospital. O’Hara said Thursday that the shooting is not connected to the others. 

Authorities said that they don’t believe that any of the incidents were random.  

O’Hara also noted that a bullet fired during the Wednesday afternoon gunfire went through the back door of an SUV, narrowly missing an infant and toddler seated inside.

"This is broad daylight out here, with a toddler and an infant in a car seat nearly getting hit by a bullet,” O’Hara said Wednesday. “It's outrageous."

Four dead, two injured in Minneapolis shootings that may be connected

Authorities have not released the victims’ names, but both O’Hara and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey offered condolences and assurances to the city’s Native American community at the news conference on Wednesday. 

O’Hara said that based on information he had as of that time, he believed the victims of the first two shootings were Native.

Community organizations had been planning events Thursday to celebrate the start of American Indian Month in Minnesota — but those events were canceled in the wake of the violence. Instead, a prayer service was held Thursday morning at Cedar Field Park.

“It’s very hard on the community,” Robert Lilligren, president and CEO of the Native America Community Development Institute told MPR News on Wednesday. “It’s not that large of a community, so to lose this many people in 24 hours, or less than 24 hours, and it’s especially disheartening when it’s on the eve of such an important and festive celebration, which is American Indian Month.”

The Minneapolis Police Department said it’s deployed additional patrols and resources to the Phillips neighborhood, and “efforts are underway to identify potential community needs for trauma response that the city could support.”

“We’ve met with community leaders to hear their concerns and identify urgent, collaborative strategies for a strong community and law enforcement response. That work will continue in the days ahead. We must confront this head-on — and together,” O’Hara said.

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Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said an FBI SWAT team and a U.S. Marshals Service task force arrested a suspect Thursday afternoon in connection with a shooting this week that left four people dead and another with life-threatening injuries. O’Hara said the man was taken into custody near the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood. 


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