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Crime, Law and Justice
MPR News Staff

Charges filed against man accused of shooting at law enforcement, sparking standoff in Minneapolis

An apartment building
Law enforcement surrounds an apartment building on the corner of East 28th Street and Nicollet Avenue in Minneapolis on June 9, near the end of an hours-long armed standoff with a man inside one of the apartments.
Cait Kelley | MPR News file

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The man accused of firing at law enforcement officers in south Minneapolis last week — sparking a lengthy standoff — now faces 21 felony charges.

Hennepin County prosecutors on Tuesday filed 18 counts of first-degree assault and three firearms charges against 31-year-old Tyler Joseph O’Brien.

According to the criminal complaint, sheriff’s deputies went to O’Brien’s apartment on Nicollet Avenue on June 9 to arrest him on a warrant issued by the state Department of Corrections on a previous firearms offense.

When no one answered, the deputies put a camera under the door and allegedly saw O’Brien standing inside, holding a handgun aimed at the door. O’Brien then allegedly fired through the door, and the deputies took cover.

Authorities blocked off streets and evacuated nearby buildings.

O’Brien is accused of firing “approximately 15-20 rounds through windows, doors and walls in the direction of law enforcement officers and civilians,” the complaint alleges. “Police negotiators were able to make phone contact with (O’Brien). (He) acknowledged the presence of police and made multiple threats to shoot officers.”

O’Brien eventually surrendered. No one was physically injured.

“Responding law enforcement showed great restraint and a commitment to de-escalation,” Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty said in a news release announcing the charges. “It was a frightening scene playing out in the middle of a residential neighborhood and Mr. O’Brien knowingly endangered the lives of law enforcement officers and the public. He will be held accountable and the community will be protected from him.”

O’Brien remains in custody and has not yet made an initial court appearance on the new charges.