At least three people, including a police officer and a suspect, were killed by gunfire that struck a number of passers-by in Minneapolis on Thursday, according to local officials.
Authorities reported that three other people, including a fireman and another police officer, were hurt at the site.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey named the officer killed in the shooting as 36-year-old Jamal Mitchell during a press conference on Thursday night.
“We will honor his sacrifice. We will remember his name. We will never forget what he did for the people of our city. The lives he protected, the lives he saved,” Frey said.
The incident started at around 5:30 p.m., according to a press statement from the city of Minneapolis, when police were called to an apartment building in the Whittier neighborhood’s 2200 block of Blaisdell Avenue South for shots fired. According to the Minneapolis Police Department, police were confronted with gunshots right away once they arrived.
When he was “ambushed,” Mitchell was trying to help two men who were hurt, about two blocks from the scene of the initial call, according to Drew Evans of the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension.
One of the initial victims died on the spot, while another was seriously hurt. While police were responding, another individual was shot. Their situation was reported to be serious and potentially life-threatening.
