Police officer ‘ambushed’ among three killed in Minneapolis shooting

A Minneapolis police officer was “ambushed” and killed by a gunman he was trying to help, a suspect was shot to death by police and a third person was found dead in an apartment as the violence unfolded Thursday, authorities said.

Police responded to a report of a double shooting at an apartment on Blaisdell Avenue, and arriving officers “immediately received gunfire and exchanged gunfire,” Assistant Police Chief Katie Blackwell said.

The suspect was injured and died at the scene, police said. Officers found two men shot in an apartment, one of whom was dead and the second was “severely injured,” authorities said.

Others were also injured, including a bystander who was in critical condition, a second police officer who was shot and had non-life-threatening injuries, and a city firefighter who was also shot and whose injuries were also non-life-threatening.

“Today is a devastating day in the city of Minneapolis,” Mayor Jacob Frey said at a news conference.

The slain officer, Jamal Mitchell, was a father who was engaged to be married, police said. He had been with the police department for about 1 1/2 years.

Mitchell was “ambushed” while trying to provide medical assistance after arriving at the scene, Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension Superintendent Drew Evans said.

“What I can say is that Officer Mitchell was trying to help the individual who shot him — and that it happened very quickly and he ambushed him,” Evans said.

Evans said the investigation was preliminary and that authorities will provide more information later “and it will make a lot more sense in the coming days about exactly what happened.”

The suspect who was killed has not been identified. The motive and what led to the shooting were unclear.

After Mitchell was shot, a second officer arrived and exchanged gunfire with the suspect, killing him, authorities said. That officer was also injured in the shooting.

Cory Jones said Minneapolis NBC affiliate KARE that he was heading to a recovery meeting in the area when he “heard a bunch of gunshots.”

“I got behind a tree and saw the officer on the ground and then a guy lying next to the car,” Jones told the station. “And I sat behind that tree until they finished shooting.”

The officer was unconscious in the street and another person was near a car, said Jones, of South Minneapolis.

At approximately 6:45 p.m., the police department posted on X that two officers were injured and others were also injured in an active incident in the Whittier neighborhood.

Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minnesota, said on X that she was “devastated to learn about the MPD officer killed and another seriously injured tonight as they worked to keep our community safe.”

She called it a tragedy and said she and her husband were praying for the families of the two officers and everyone else affected by the violence.

Gov. Tim Walz said the Minnesota State Patrol was sent to assist police. The federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives said its agents were responding to “an active shooting scene.”

Walz said press conferences about injured officers and funerals “cannot be the norm.”

“This is really difficult work. It’s a very difficult job, and it’s very difficult with a lot of guns on the streets,” said Walz, adding that police must be supported and have everything they need to protect their communities and themselves.

“Deepest condolences and an absolute commitment that this cannot be the norm,” he said.