Two police officers and a firefighter in a suburb of Minneapolis were killed on Sunday by a heavily armed man who shot at them from inside a home that was filled with children. The shooting in a tree-lined neighborhood of Burnsville, Minnesota, left a third officer wounded. The suspect, who officials said had multiple guns and large amounts of ammunition, also died. Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension Superintendent Drew Evans said that there was an exchange of gunfire, and that authorities were still piecing together details of what happened, per the AP.
The firefighter, who also works as a paramedic, was shot while providing aid to an injured officer, Evans said. Both were part of a SWAT team that had been called to a domestic situation at the home. Inside, an armed man had barricaded himself with his family, including seven children ranging in age from 2 to 15, Evans said. The Minnesota Police and Peace Officers Association said the standoff lasted four hours before a SWAT team entered the home.
"We still don't know the exact exchange of gunfire that occurred," Evans said. "Certainly several officers did return fire." He said that around 8am the suspect was found dead and the family and children were released from the home. None of them were hurt. City officials identified the slain officers as Paul Elmstrand and Matthew Ruge, both 27. Adam Finseth, 40, a firefighter and paramedic for the city since 2019, also was killed. Another police officer, Sgt. Adam Medlicott, was being treated at a hospital with what are believed to be non-life-threatening injuries. Burnsville, a city of around 64,000, is located about 15 miles south of downtown Minneapolis. Updated throughout with new details.
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