Authorities are investigating the background of Carlton Neal Johnson, the suspect in a mass shooting at a downtown Minneapolis apartment complex that left two residents dead and six others injured on Wednesday. Court records indicate Johnson was in the process of being evicted from the Shoreline Plaza complex, formerly known as Loring Towers, due to a series of violent incidents and alleged firearm violations.<\/p>\n
Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension Superintendent Drew Evans announced during a Thursday press conference that his agency is specifically reviewing the officers’ use of force. While Evans identified Johnson as the suspect, he noted that the Hennepin County Medical Examiner’s Office must formally confirm the identity. Evans stated that an autopsy is underway and believes Johnson died during an exchange of gunfire.<\/p>\n
Interim Minneapolis Police Chief Bill Peterson confirmed that police were previously familiar with the suspect. Updates provided by Chief Peterson and Mayor Jacob Frey on Thursday revealed the status of the injured officers. Officer Joseph Michnowski remains hospitalized after undergoing surgery for two gunshot wounds to the stomach. Officer Yahye Ahmed, who was shot in the leg, was released from the hospital on Thursday afternoon. A third officer sustained injuries from broken glass after breaking into a squad car to disable its siren.<\/p>\n
The eviction complaint details six incidents beginning in January. On June 11, Johnson entered the management office and openly displayed a firearm. Around the same period, he told residents he had acquired a new gun. Two days later, he allegedly brandished a weapon on a nearby sidewalk. After Johnson requested a second chance, management issued a letter warning him against displaying firearms on the premises and requiring compliance with Minnesota carry laws.<\/p>\n
Despite these warnings, the complaint alleges Johnson continued to breach his lease. On June 19, he made concerning verbal statements about using a gun to a security officer while lifting his shirt to reveal a firearm. By June 25, Johnson was walking around the block with a visible weapon and brandished it at another resident in a common area. Police were called, but the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office determined there was insufficient evidence for charges because the weapon did not leave Johnson’s waistband and he held a legal permit.<\/p>\n
Sources told WCCO that Johnson had been evicted from the apartment earlier on the day of the shooting. Court documents show he was scheduled for trial and had a hearing set for September 11. Additionally, Johnson was the subject of a restraining order filed by the 27-year-old mother of his child, who alleged he sent over 120 text messages containing vulgar insults and threats between March 6 and March 10, 2023.<\/p>\n
Evans confirmed the identities of the two victims killed: 61-year-old Muse Afrah and 63-year-old Dale Henry Spry. Another victim, property manager Jan, was shot but is expected to survive.<\/p>\n
Residents described the chaotic scene. Albert Morse remembered Jan as a helpful neighbor. Brian Swedberg, who was smoking behind the building, heard gunfire and rushed inside to find blood and a victim in the main entry. He also heard another injured person calling 911. Swedberg, a former Marine, said he stayed locked in his apartment for more than 15 hours.<\/p>\n
Across the street, Kody Kolb, executive chef at the Nicollet Diner, locked doors and urged people to stay calm after noticing a large police and SWAT presence. He was unsure if the gunfire was coming from suspects or law enforcement. The diner remained on lockdown for two hours. Kolb noted that the restaurant had experienced a fatal shooting at the same apartment complex one year prior, which may have helped him remain composed.<\/p>\nhttps:\/\/prod.vodvideo.cbsnews.com\/cbsnews\/vr\/hls\/4795135_hls\/master.m3u8<\/a>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Carlton Neal Johnson, suspected in a downtown Minneapolis mass shooting, was facing eviction due to multiple incidents involving assault and displaying firearms.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[256,488,677,678,26],"class_list":["post-249","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-crime","tag-law-enforcement","tag-mass-shooting","tag-minneapolis","tag-us"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/yovao.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/249","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/yovao.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/yovao.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yovao.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yovao.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=249"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/yovao.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/249\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":250,"href":"https:\/\/yovao.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/249\/revisions\/250"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/yovao.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=249"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yovao.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=249"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yovao.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=249"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}