Minn. Police Officer Shot in Face by Rifle During Call

A man armed with a rifle shot at officers in Roseville Tuesday night, wounding one in the face, the police chief said Wednesday.

Later in the incident, a Roseville officer returned fire and the suspect sustained a significant injury to his groin area, which was fatal, according to Chief Erika Scheider.

The suspect fired about 100 rounds at officers and into homes in the area, Scheider said. The officer was in stable condition as of Wednesday morning.

Police were dispatched about 7:30 p.m. Tuesday to the 2900 block of West Owasso Boulevard after people reported hearing multiple shots fired. One person reported the suspect was armed with a scoped rifle, according to Scheider.

“When our officers arrived in the area, they immediately came under fire with continuous rifle rounds being fired at the officers and their squad cars,” Scheider said. “Officers were unable to determine where the shots were coming from because the suspect had taken up a concealed position in a wooded residential area.”

In the “initial first minutes” a Roseville officer was shot and injured by the suspect, Scheider said. “Recognizing the seriousness of the injuries, his partners dragged him to safety, loaded him into a squad” and drove him to the hospital, she added.

People in the area continued reporting their homes were being struck by gunfire from the suspect, and the Ramsey County Emergency Communications Center sent out alerts to residents in the vicinity to “shelter in place.”

At 8:34 p.m., an hour into the incident, a Roseville officer found the suspect outside a nearby residence. That’s when Scheider said the officer returned fire, and the suspect was wounded.

Officers provided medical aid to the man, who was taken to the hospital and died a short time later.

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