Despite the efforts of helpful bystanders, two people died Friday after a fiery head-on crash in Andover.

According to the Anoka County sheriff’s office, police responded to a report of a crash about 7:40 a.m. on 165th Avenue and Makah Street. They arrived to find one of the two vehicles on fire.

Bystanders had pulled the driver from the burning car. Lifesaving efforts were attempted, but both drivers were pronounced dead at the scene. There were no passengers in either vehicle.

Preliminary investigation shows that the two vehicles were traveling in opposite directions on 165th Avenue when they collided head-on.

Police have not released the identities of the drivers.

Rosemount police are looking for the owner of an injured dog.

According to a Facebook post Friday, the dog, which appears to be a Blue Merle Border Collie, was found in the area of 120th Street West and Dodd Boulevard.

Police took the dog to a vet for care, but, despite over 100 comments, more than 1,000 shares and multiple phone calls, the owner has not yet been found.

Those with information on the dog’s owner should call 651-322-2323.

Two separate shooting incidents in St. Paul left two men injured Friday evening and early Saturday morning.

At 8:45 p.m. Friday, St. Paul officers responded to several callers reporting shots fired in the area of Sherburne and Hamline avenues in the Midway neighborhood.

Police found one man wounded on the 1300 block of Sherburne Ave. He had non-life-threatening injuries.

At 3:05 a.m. Saturday, officers were dispatched to a fight in progress in the Payne-Phalen neighborhood. Officers found a man with a gunshot wound near Payne and York avenues. He was transported to Regions Hospital.

No other information was immediately available. Both cases remain under investigation.

When the words “shots fired” came over his radio, St. Paul police Sgt. Steve Lentsch flipped on his squad’s lights and sirens, sending red lights flickering across East Maryland Avenue on Wednesday night.

Other cars made way for Lentsch as he rushed to Dayton’s Bluff.

Lentsch arrived at an apartment complex, where a woman explained friends were arguing. She said she heard a boom, but thought it was a firework. Another woman sitting in the area told Lentsch it sounded like lumber falling off a truck

Lentsch and other officers who responded went on their way, waiting for more calls of gunfire.

After three homicides in eight hours in St. Paul on Monday and Tuesday — which Police Chief Todd Axtell called unprecedented in his 30 years with the department — this is the focus of Lentsch and his crew of eight officers now. They respond quickly to any reports of gunshots in the city, trying to find who’s pulling the triggers.

‘PRESENCE IS THE KEY WORD’

Axtell announced short- and long-term plans for addressing gun violence Tuesday. Assigning additional investigators to work on solving homicides and beefing up the presence of officers on the streets are among the immediate steps.

“Presence is the key word,” said Deputy Police Chief Mary Nash. “We’re not going out there … with a show of force, but we want to bring a sense of security back, knowing that our communities are hurting right now.”

The police officials don’t know how long the plan will be in place.

“It’s going to be day-to-day assessment,” Nash said. “Sometimes, when you can put the pieces together on your homicides and on your shots-fired cases and bring people to justice on those, you can tap down some of the violence also.”

CHANGES CAME AFTER EMERGENCY MEETING

The fatal shootings happened in quick succession:

An 18-year-old man was killed on busy Rice Street at 4:30 p.m. Monday.

Then, a 31-year-old man lost his life when he went to check on a multi-vehicle crash outside his Payne-Phalen area home at 10 p.m. Monday.

And a 27-year-old passenger died after someone fired into a car his was riding in at Marion Street and University Avenue at 12:15 a.m. Tuesday.

They were among five homicides that occurred in a nine-day period, bringing the number of homicides to 19 in St. Paul for the year. The killings also followed a recent uptick in people injured in shootings.

Police said they’re investigating whether any of the shootings are related, though the three on Monday and Tuesday did not appear connected.

Officers already were “devoting a lot of resources to this very problem,” Axtell said Tuesday afternoon, adding that they’ve arrested people for gun crimes, taken guns off the streets and “intervened countless times to prevent shootings before they occur.”

On Tuesday morning, Axtell held an emergency meeting with the department’s leaders. He said they asked, “What more we can we do in terms of different deployment strategies, creative uses of resources and partnerships?” and developed a five-step plan.

FOCUS ON GUN CRIMES

Since Tuesday night, there have been more officers on the streets focusing on gun crimes.

Officers from the St. Paul department’s gang/gun unit already respond to gun-related crimes happening in the late afternoon and early evening.

Now, officers from the F.O.R.C.E. unit have joined them in that work. The unit — which stands for Focusing Our Resources on Community Empowerment — typically works on street-level drug dealing, and residences or businesses where police are repeatedly called for problems. It’s not uncommon for them to work on gun crimes, but for now it’s their focus.

The new gun violence task force is helping St. Paul investigators put together the pieces on the recent homicides and shootings, said Lentsch, who supervises the F.O.R.C.E. unit.

On Wednesday night, F.O.R.C.E. officers assisted investigators who had a search warrant for the Roseville home where Lionel Eaton lived.

Eaton, who is jailed, is charged with the murder of Javier Sanmiguel Yanez, the good Samaritan killed Monday night after the car crash at Edgerton Street and Case Avenue.

PATROLLING ‘HOT SPOTS,’ RESPONDING TO GUNFIRE

After the search warrant, the officers patrolled recent “hot spots” where gunfire has been reported. They’re in various neighborhoods throughout the city and are mapped out by crime analysts.

All the while, the officers were listening for any reports of people calling 911 about shots fired. There were fewer calls on Wednesday and Thursday nights, which were rainy.

On Tuesday, though, officers went to call after call.

When officers respond to a report of shots fired, they’re checking first to see if anyone was injured. Then, they’re looking at, “Did any of the bullets hit a house? Hit a car?” Lentsch said.

The answer was “yes” to all those questions Tuesday.

At 6:45 p.m. Tuesday, a 19-year-old was shot in the leg in the Battle Creek area — on the same block where 22-year-old Kacey Feiner was fatally shot last Saturday.

Gang officers would have gone to the hospital to talk to the injured man, but most were helping homicide investigators Tuesday night, Lentsch said. F.O.R.C.E. officers went instead.

OFFICERS BEGIN IMMEDIATE INVESTIGATIONS

Then, about 9:35 p.m. Tuesday, shots were fired at Park Street and Lyton Place, a couple of blocks from Rice Street and not far from where 18-year-old Raumez Ross died Monday afternoon.

The gunfire flattened the tire of a parked van, another vehicle’s windshield was broken and a bullet hole appeared to be on the outside of a home, according to a police spokesman. Officers found seven shell casings.

Having gang and F.O.R.C.E. officers canvas an area after shots are fired can free up patrol officers to go to their next call, and help with investigations.

“We’re doing more investigation than patrol officers typically have time to do because they’re off to the next call, whether that’s a domestic or an accident,” Lentsch said. A patrol officer might respond to 18 to 20 calls in a night, Nash said.

Officers from the gun violence task force are knocking on doors asking, “Did you see anything? Did you hear anything?” Lentsch said.

They’re looking to see if anyone has home surveillance systems that might have captured video of what happened, including the suspects. Shell casings are collected to determine if they’re connected to other shootings.

The goals: Identifying suspects and getting them into custody, based on the officers’ initial investigation.

If they’re not able to arrest someone that night, the officers’ immediate work can help save time for investigators already working on other shootings, Lentsch said.

EXTRA HELP FOR HOMICIDE INVESTIGATIONS

For investigations of homicides, it’s all hands on deck. Charges have been filed in two of the five recent homicides.

Investigators were fatigued after the steady stream of homicides and shootings. They worked as many as 30 hours in a row during the trio of homicides, Nash said.

“People go into cop mode and investigator mode, which is the adrenaline kicking in and people pushing through the fatigue so the families can have some resolution,” Nash said.

But the investigators’ bosses needed to tell them to go home and get some rest, so they could continue to be productive, Nash said.

They called in investigators from the sex crimes unit to help with homicide investigations. Officers and investigators who usually work on a federal task force and in the department’s narcotics unit also are assisting.

And investigators from other major crimes units are taking on assault cases that typically fall to the homicide unit.

“We’re triaging and diverting resources,” Nash said. That might mean someone who had their car stolen or home broken into has to wait longer for an investigator to return a call, she said.

The police department doesn’t have information yet about how many overtime hours have been incurred, said Steve Linders, a St. Paul police spokesman.

“We are being as fiscally responsible as possible while meeting the needs of the public,” he said.

City of Duluth officials announced Sunday the name of the man arrested in connection with the fire that destroyed Adas Israel Congregation synagogue.

Matthew James Amiot, 36, of Duluth was arrested Friday and is being held at St. Louis County Jail on a felony charge of first-degree arson. The News Tribune does not generally name suspects who have not yet been charged but is doing so due to the high-profile nature of the crime.

Amiot has previous convictions for misdemeanor shoplifting and trespassing. Duluth Police Chief Mike Tusken said Amiot has no permanent address. Court records show Amiot has a history of convictions for shoplifting and trespassing.

The city of Duluth held a Sunday morning news conference regarding the arrest and the ongoing investigation.

“Based on all the information that I have reviewed, that I’ve read and the investigators I have talked to, at this moment in time there is no reason to believe that this is a bias or hate crime,” Tusken said. “This may change as this investigation progresses.”

But Tusken stressed, “this investigation is open and active.”

Tusken laid out the timeline of events related to fire and investigation. Firefighters were called to the synagogue at 2:23 a.m. Sept. 9 on a report of a fire in an outbuilding. The fire started on the northeast side of the building and spread to the synagogue.

Tusken said Amiot was identified as a person of interest on the afternoon of Sept. 9 after police canvassed the area, located as much surveillance video as possible and followed up on leads. Police interviewed two other people last week who happened upon the fire in the morning. Neither are considered suspects.

On Friday, investigators met with assistant St. Louis County Attorney Victoria Wanta to review the investigation, at which time a probable cause warrant for arrest was issued, Tusken said. Amiot was located, arrested in downtown Duluth and interviewed on Friday afternoon.

Tusken would not comment further on Amiot’s motives or how the fire was started, directing people to the criminal complaint that is expected to be filed mid-week with the State District Court in Duluth. Duluth Fire Chief Shawn Krizaj did say that no accelerant was found at the scene.

Adas Israel Congregation lay leader Phillip Sher spoke at the news conference, thanking everyone involved in the investigation as well as all of those who have reached out to him and the congregation with support.

“I’ve gone there my whole life and the first thing you think of is an image of where you’re going to go now. We’ll forge ahead. Right now we are making arrangements to begin services again,” Sher said. “True Judaism is in the heart —it’s not in the building — and our legacy will go on with our hearts.”

News of the fire spread throughout the world and has drawn attention on social media.

A large and intense investigation into the cause of the fire stretched throughout last week, drawing on an estimated 20 investigators with the Duluth police and fire departments, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. That particular federal agency gets involved when a house of worship burns.

A Duluth fireman, identified as Ben Gasner, was injured during the fire. Krizaj said Gasner, who has been with the department for 19 years, is recovering at home from a concussion sustained while battling the fire.

The Adas Israel Congregation synagogue is home to a “shul” of Modern Orthodox Jewish families. Built in 1901, the synagogue was the last of its kind in the Northland. To worship in the Modern Orthodox Jewish faith is to practice Jewish law while living out modern lives.

New York author Sarah Rose is a descendant of one of the synagogue’s founders and told the News Tribune Sunday she was relieved to hear the police didn’t suspect it to be a hate crime.

“It’s our biggest fear, and I hope that it continues to be a lack of hate,” Rose said.

Rose called Duluth her ancestral home. She visited relatives and the synagogue often on trips from her childhood home in Chicago. Rose watched the news conference from afar and will continue to follow the story as it plays out in the court system.

“No one here is looking for vengeance,” she said regarding Amiot. “He’s innocent until proven guilty.”

Rose said she has no set plans to come back to Duluth for a visit, but when she did she always assumed Adas Israel was still going to be there.

“I’m not going to visit the ashes of Adas Israel,” she said.

Rose said she’s not only grateful for local authorities as they’ve investigated but also grateful for the people who have kept Adas Israel going as numbers have dwindled over the years.

“I hope they get what they want and what they need. You couldn’t ask for better guys to make those choices,” Rose said talking about David and Phillip Sher. “I think the world of David and Phillip.”

Steve Hunegs, executive director of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Minnesota and the Dakotas, also expressed relief in hearing authorities do not believe this was a hate crime at this time.

“We understand that our Jewish community feels uneasy in this current political and social environment where synagogues, mosques, and predominantly black churches have been attacked in recent years,” Hunegs said in a statement sent to the News Tribune Sunday. “The image of a house of worship ablaze is a searing reminder of the challenges we face with rising anti-Semitism and bigotry in this country.”

Hunegs said he asks the public to respect the investigative process and withhold final judgment until the full facts are revealed in the criminal complaint later this week.

The Midwest Anti-Defamation League in Chicago said in a statement on Twitter that it is “relieved investigators don’t believe Adas Israel fire was a hate crime” and that the “response in Duluth is inspiring and ADL stands with the community.”

Mayor Emily Larson spoke at the news conference saying the city continues to offer its “heartfelt condolences, prayers and support to the entire Jewish community for their loss.”

“They will not move forward alone,” Larson said. “This community does incredible things for one another when we need to, and now is a time that we need to.”

A St. Paul police officer fatally shot a man who rear-ended his squad car and fought with the officer, according to the police department.

On emergency radio traffic Sunday night, the officer could be heard shouting, “Drop the knife, drop the knife!”

The shooting happened about 5:50 p.m. in the Midway area at Thomas Avenue and Griggs Street. The man died at the scene.

Police Chief Todd Axtell wrote on Facebook Sunday night: “One of our officers was faced with one of the most gut-wrenching situations imaginable” and he said it “is a tragedy for everyone involved.”

A City Council member and the St. Paul NAACP president said they are looking for answers and called for the release of body camera footage.

Mayor Melvin Carter said in a Sunday night statement, “Our hearts are hurt with the news of an officer-involved shooting. … This tragedy touches all of our lives and leaves our entire community in mourning. Additional information will be forthcoming from the (Bureau of Criminal Apprehension), who has taken the lead on the investigation to begin our search for answers and understanding.”

Statement from St. Paul Mayor @melvincarter3. pic.twitter.com/zEwDERnsJ4

— Mara Gottfried (@MaraGottfried) September 16, 2019

CRASH, THEN A FIGHT

The St. Paul officer, whose name wasn’t released Sunday, was at a stop sign when a vehicle struck his squad from behind, said Sgt. Mike Ernster, a St. Paul police spokesman.

The officer exited his squad and “was immediately confronted by the driver of the striking vehicle, and a fight ensued,” Ernster said.

During the fight, the officer shot the man who confronted him, according to the police department.

Paramedics responded, but the man died at the scene. The Ramsey County medical examiner’s office will confirm his identity, police said.

The officer was wearing a body camera, which was activated. The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, which is investigating, will review the video and other evidence.

It’s unknown why the man struck the squad; that is something the BCA will try to determine, Ernster said.

Was a knife found at the scene?

“They’re still processing the scene out there,” Ernster said Sunday night. “What has or what hasn’t been recovered will be released by the BCA.”

The officer will be placed on administrative leave, which is standard procedure.

CALLS FOR BODY CAMERA RELEASE

Carter, City Council member Mitra Jalali Nelson and St. Paul NAACP President Farhio Khalif came to the area to talk to residents and community members who gathered outside the crime-scene tape.

Nelson and Khalif called for the release of body camera footage.

“Another black man has been killed by the police,” Khalif said. “… We need justice and we need to know exactly what happened.”

Nelson said she doesn’t know what transpired but said it’s gut-wrenching under any circumstances.

She said she echoes the community call for the police department to release body camera footage.

“Our body cameras are supposed to capture moments gone wrong, moments of tragedy, everything in between and I just think we really, really need to be able to see that right now,” Nelson said Sunday night. “I think one of the most important things we need is transparency.”

Asked Sunday night whether the police department will release the body camera video, Ernster said, “”I think that will be a question that will come later and it will go through the BCA.”

The last time St. Paul police officers fatally shot a person, on Aug. 5, 2018, Axtell released body camera footage on Aug. 17, 2018.

Carter, along with some of William James Hughes’ family and community members had called for the release. Prosecutors later determined officers were legally justified in shooting Hughes.

Axtell wrote in Sunday’s Facebook post that, due to the BCA investigation, he couldn’t say much at this time.

“I want you all to know that everyone at your police department is deeply saddened by what happened,” he said. “Our hearts go out to the family of the man who died, to the officer and his family, to the other officers and first responders who tried to save the man’s life, and to our entire community.”

Two brothers have been charged in the fatal shooting of a St. Paul firefighter earlier this month.

Dontay Lee Caraway, 39, and his brother Blake Deshaun Caraway, 36, showed up at Thomas Harrigan’s house around 8:30 p.m. on Sept. 2, according to criminal complaints against the two charging them each with two counts of second-degree murder.

Armed with a gun, Blake Caraway was there to help Dontay Caraway retrieve a cell phone after Harrigan kicked him out of his house for stealing, according to the charges.

The Caraway brothers encountered a woman staying at the house and demanded she turn over the phone, but she refused because Dontay Caraway had stolen some of her boyfriend’s belongings while he lived there, according to the complaint.

She told the men to get out, and then Harrigan — who was also home at the time — got involved, the woman told police. An argument ensued and Harrigan, who was holding a stick, almost struck Blake Caraway with it.

That’s when Blake Caraway shot Caraway once in the chest, and ran out of the house with his brother, according to the complaint.

Paramedics from Harrigan’s own fire department rendered aid when they responded. The house is located on Ivy Avenue in the Prosperity Heights area of the East Side. Harrigan died at Regions Hospital 30 minutes later.

It was a tragic ending for Harrigan. The veteran had been trying to address substance abuse issues developed after years of struggling with post-traumatic stress disorder related to his time serving in the National Guard and army in Iraq and Afghanistan, according to his family.

Harrigan earned awards for combat service overseas, and was respected for the compassion he treated people with as a St. Paul firefighter, his father, John Harrigan wrote in a Facebook post after his death.

Harrigan was on a leave of absence from the fire department when he died. The leave started July 29.

It was around then that Harrigan “voluntarily entered a VA treatment and rehabilitation program in St. Cloud,” John Harrigan wrote. However, he was expelled a week later for confrontations with a fellow patient.

Following his death, investigators interviewed some of his roommates at the house.

They told police that Harrigan often brought different people in to stay at his residence, eventually kicking them out for one problem or another before letting others take their place, according to the complaint.

The occupants racked up their share of problems with law enforcement. Police were called to the house 20 times this year, nine times in August.

One of the calls was related to the drug-overdose of a 19-year-old man, who received Narcan. Another time four people were picked up on warrants for suspicion of possession of methamphetamine. Harrigan was not among those arrested.

Another man interviewed following the shooting told police he looked after Harrigan’s home while he had been in treatment, and that Harrigan had problems with people who stayed at the home stealing from him.

Another roommate told investigators that Harrigan and the man got into a physical altercation with Dontay Caraway days prior to the shooting after Dontay Caraway was caught stealing, the complaint said.

They kicked him out without letting him gather his belongings, the complaint said.

Both Blake and Dontay Caraway were arrested out of state Friday and are being held in connection with Harrigan’s homicide, according to St. Paul police.

Blake Caraway was arrested in Florida and Dontay Caraway in Oklahoma.

Neither men could be reached for comment.

DULUTH — A homeless Duluth man allegedly admitted to starting the fire that destroyed the Adas Israel Congregation synagogue last week, police say.

Matthew James Amiot, 36, was charged Monday with felony and gross misdemeanor offenses in the Sept. 9 blaze that ravaged the 118-year-old synagogue in downtown Duluth. Bail was set at $20,000.

Police have said there is “no reason to believe that this is a bias or hate crime,” and Amiot’s brother attributed it to a misguided attempt to stay warm on a blustery night.

According to a criminal complaint, Amiot used a lighter to ignite “a variety of combustible materials” in the sukkah, a separate religious structure behind the synagogue, early that morning.

At 2:13 a.m., Amiot was seen walking behind the synagogue at 302 E. Third St., according to the complaint. Two minutes later, the document states, he was seen “looking back at the flickering flames.” Authorities arrived at the scene at 2:22 a.m. and reported 3-foot-tall flames coming from the area.

By 3:39 a.m., the building began to collapse. Duluth Fire Department Capt. Ben Gasner was knocked unconscious by falling debris, while there was a “near miss” for a number of other firefighters, according to the complaint. Gasner, who has been with the department for 19 years, is recovering at home from a concussion, officials said Sunday.

The synagogue was deemed a total loss. The structure was valued at $117,000, according to county property records, while the loss of religious artifacts was estimated to be in excess of $250,000.

In a statement to police after his Friday arrest, Amiot allegedly admitted to starting the combustible materials on fire outside the synagogue. The defendant stated he tried to extinguish the fire by spitting on it but “when it would not go out, he walked away,” according to the complaint.

Accelerants were not detected at the scene, authorities said.

Amiot is charged with a felony count of starting a negligent fire resulting in more than $2,500 in damage and a gross misdemeanor count of starting a negligent fire resulting in great bodily harm.

He was not charged with arson, the crime on which he had been held since Friday. That offense requires intent in damaging or destroying a building by fire.

The defendant’s brother, Ben Amiot, said he was dismayed to see people insinuating that the incident was a hate crime.

“He’s not the type of person to do this intentionally,” Ben Amiot said. “He’s been homeless for years and has some mental health issues. He was trying to get out of the elements on a cold, windy and rainy night in a shed behind the building. I feel that the fire started uncontrollably and he panicked and took off instead of alerting authorities.”

Ben Amiot said his family has been the target of online harassment since his brother was first identified as the suspect.

“This was a total accident and I feel he should be held somewhat responsible once they have the investigation completed,” he said. “(But) I want people to know that this wasn’t a hate crime or targeted because of (religious) beliefs. Just someone trying to stay warm and something terrible happened when it shouldn’t have.”

Public defender Natasha VanLieshout, who represented Amiot at his arraignment, said the defendant “denies all allegations against him.” Amoit has been living at the CHUM shelter in Duluth and relies on disability as his only source of income, the defense attorney said.

“He says he was in the wrong place at the wrong time because he is homeless,” VanLieshout told the court.

St. Louis County prosecutor Vicky Wanta pointed to a “steady stream” of theft and trespassing charges in Amiot’s recent history in requesting the $20,000 bail figure. She said he has been issued 16 citations with nine convictions, along with receiving a stay of imposition in a third-degree burglary case.

Sixth Judicial District Judge Eric Hylden cited concerns over Amiot’s history of failing to appear for court appearances in granting Wanta’s bail request and denying the defendant a referral for supervised release.

Amiot, who remains at the St. Louis County Jail, is scheduled to be back in court on Oct. 8.

The Adas Israel Congregation synagogue is home to a “shul” of Modern Orthodox Jewish families. Built in 1901, the synagogue was the last of its kind in northeastern Minnesota. To worship in the Modern Orthodox Jewish faith is to practice Jewish law while living out modern lives.

“True Judaism is in the heart — it’s not in the building — and our legacy will go on with our hearts,” he said.

Reporter Adelle Whitefoot contributed to this report.

Body camera footage from a St. Paul police officer who fatally shot a 31-year-old man on Sunday will be released when it won’t compromise the investigation, the police department said Monday.

Mayor Melvin Carter said Monday he’s working closely with Police Chief Todd Axtell and the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension “to ensure a thorough, timely and transparent investigation, including public release of body camera footage as soon as reasonably possible.”

The Ramsey County medical examiner’s office identified the man as Ronald Davis, of St. Paul.

Davis rear-ended a St. Paul squad car in the Midway neighborhood about 5:50 p.m. Sunday, according to police. Police said he then initiated a physical confrontation with the officer, a fight ensued and the officer shot him at Thomas Avenue and Griggs Street.

On emergency radio traffic, the officer was heard shouting, “Drop the knife, drop the knife!”

The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension is conducting the investigation and information, such as whether a knife was found at the scene, will be released by that agency, said St. Paul police spokesman Sgt. Mike Ernster.

“We’re not in a position at this point to make any statements about any evidence,” BCA spokeswoman Jill Oliveira said Monday. “We’ll be able to provide more details once the initial interviews have been completed.”

Police have not given a timeline about when the video could be made public.

“Investigations take time,” Ernster said. “It’s better to get it right than to move quickly and release information that could impact the BCA investigation. Chief Axtell will release the video, in consultation with the BCA, when he knows the investigation won’t be compromised.”

The Ramsey County attorney’s office will review the case to determine whether the shooting was justified.

“In order to expedite our decision-making timeline, we will be working with the BCA to receive evidence as they collect it and conduct a simultaneous review,” said Dennis Gerhardstein, a spokesman for the county attorney’s office.

WITNESS: MAN ATTACKED OFFICER

A woman who lives down the block from the shooting was sitting on her front steps with her mom and 3-year-old grandson when she said she saw a squad car drive by slowly on Thomas Avenue.

The squad stopped at the stop sign at Griggs Street. Then, a white car “came flying down the street,” said Connie Ho. She said she shouted to the driver to slow down.

Then, they heard a “boom!” as the car hit the squad from behind, Ho said.

The driver of the white car immediately got out and charged at the officer who was exiting his squad; the man struggled and fought with the officer, Ho said. She said she dialed 911 and provided information about what she was seeing.

It all happened “very quickly,” Ho said, and the officer wound up on the ground. She said she saw the driver throw him down.

The officer rolled a couple of times, got up and went behind his squad car. Ho heard a “pop” and thought, “Oh my God, he shot the officer,” she said.

When she looked over again, she saw it was the driver who was down on the ground. Ho said she couldn’t see whether the driver had a weapon.

Another neighbor, Miigwan Rhodes, heard a crash. Rhodes, 17, was heading outside to see what happened, but then three gunshots rang out.

“It’s a little weird to think it just happened right there,” Rhodes said Monday morning. “The street’s open again and it’s all gone, but it’s a little disheartening.”

At another home on the block, a woman said she heard yelling, gunshots and a man shouting about shots being fired and someone being hit. She called 911, not realizing it was an officer who fired his gun.

QUESTIONS FROM COMMUNITY MEMBERS

George Xenos, who lives in the neighborhood, brought a bouquet of white flowers from his garden on Monday morning. He set them on the grass, near a spot where blood appeared to stain the street.

“Mental health is my big concern,” Xenos said, adding that he wondered if the man who was shot was having an episode.

He also said he wants to know, if the driver had a knife, whether he showed the weapon or attacked the officer with it.

Xenos said he brought the flowers as a memorial “for everyone, the whole community.”

“The death of any human being is tragic and … for any good police officer, it would be a terrible thing to do,” Xenos said.

Council Member Mitra Jalali Nelson, who represents the area, said Monday there’s an urgent need for the body camera footage to be released.

“A huge part of community anxiety is not having independent verification of what happened,” she said. “I hope we get clear answers, but we don’t know what the body camera actually shows or what it captured.”

A St. Paul teen was sentenced Monday to 10 years in prison for the shooting death of Billy Ray Robles, a St. Paul rapper.

Trashaun Morris, 18, was 17 at the time of the shooting in Inver Grove Heights on March 24, 2018. He was certified to stand trial as an adult in Dakota County District Court last September and pleaded guilty to second-degree murder on May 21.

Morris and three other teens have been sentenced in the slaying that followed an argument between two teen groups on a party bus in Inver Grove Heights. When the bus pulled over to drop off passengers in the parking lot of AMC Showplace 16, a punch was thrown and shots were fired, leaving Robles dead and wounding a 16-year-old boy, according to criminal charges.

Police determined the shooting was gang-related.

Two 16-year-olds from St. Paul, whose names were not divulged because they were minors, pleaded guilty to one count of riot in the first degree in May 2018. One was sentenced to five years, the other, four years. For their cases, the judge stayed the execution of their sentences and placed the juveniles under extended court jurisdiction until they reach the age of 21.

Taishawn Taquan Smith, 18, of Crystal, pleaded guilty to one count of riot in the second degree in September 2018, and was sentenced to 13 months in prison. The judge gave him credit for 163 days in jail, probation for five years and stayed the execution of the sentence.

Robles, 19, was described by his cousin as an aspiring rapper who grew up on St. Paul’s West Side and had attended Humboldt High School.

Authorities have released the names of five officers involved in the fatal shooting of a Minnesota man who livestreamed the final moments of his life.

Brian Quinones was shot Sept. 7 after leading police on a chase that started in the Minneapolis suburb of Edina and ended in Richfield.

Authorities have said Quinones got out of his car and confronted officers with a knife before he was shot. His brother said afterward that Quinones had been having suicidal thoughts. While he was driving, he livestreamed himself on Facebook.

Five officers are on paid administrative leave. They are: Nicholas Pedersen and Benjamin Wenande, who have both been with the Edina Police Department for four years; and Joseph Carroll, Dylan Schultz and Macabe Stariha, who have been Richfield police officers for four, three and two years respectively.

Four University of St. Thomas buildings in St. Paul were evacuated Tuesday morning in response to a bomb threat.

The buildings were searched, no suspicious objects were found and the “all clear” was announced at 9:35 a.m.

St. Thomas President Julie Sullivan called the bomb threat frightening and frustrating.

“It is frightening any time the safety of our students, faculty and staff is threatened,” she wrote in a Tuesday letter to the university community. “And it’s frustrating because this is the third bomb threat our university has received since April.”

On Tuesday at 7:45 a.m., the university “received a generalized bomb threat for the St. Paul campus,” the university said in a statement. “Subsequent calls specifically referenced additional buildings.”

St. Paul police are investigating, and the FBI is working with the university and police. There is no evidence that links the three bomb threats together, according to the university.

Tuesday’s bomb threat led to the evacuation of the Facilities and Design Center, John R. Roach Center for the Liberal Arts, Anderson Student Center and O’Shaughnessy Science Hall — which had classes underway. They were reopened after the search.

Classes in those buildings were canceled until 1 p.m.

Bomb threats were called into St. Thomas on Aug. 20 and April 17. Nothing suspicious was found in those cases.

Eighteen people have been charged in connection with two violent robberies last month in Minneapolis.

Adrian Cooper, 25, of Brooklyn Center, was charged in both incidents. All the adults and juveniles were charged with at least one count of attempted first-degree robbery, first-degree robbery, aiding and abetting first-degree robbery and third-degree riot, according to Hennepin County authorities. All of these charges, expect for the riot charges, are felonies.

Suspects ranged in age from 15 to 27.

According to criminal complaints and juvenile petitions, the initial incident happened on the morning of Aug. 3.  Minneapolis Police received surveillance video of an attempted robbery outside of Target Field. The footage shows about a dozen people attempting to take a man’s cell phone, beating and kicking him as they also ripped off his shoes and pants as they went through his pockets.

The man was on the ground and then jumped on, hit with planting pots and run over by a bicycle. The man and all the suspects left before police arrived.

Over the next three weeks, police worked to identify the assailants and by the end of August they had questioned, and in many cases, received partial confessions from the defendants, according to the complaint. Police identified the man who was assaulted and robbed earlier this month and spoke with him.

The second incident happened in the early morning of Aug. 17 near Fifth Street and Hennepin Avenue in downtown Minneapolis.

A man told police he was with friends in a downtown bar but after he left, according to the complaint, he was standing on the corner using his phone when a group surrounded him and attempted to grab his wallet.

Four of the suspects in the two robberies were 15 years old and their names and charges are not public. In each of the robberies, a suspect was arrested but not charged.

The man suspected of robbing the Midwest One Bank in White Bear Lake last month has been arrested and charged in connection with a string of bank robberies in Minnesota and Wisconsin.

William M. Villanueva, 37, was arrested in connection with six bank robberies in Minnesota and one in Wisconsin that occurred in August. He has been charged with two counts of second-degree aggravated robbery by the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office.

The robberies occurred at banks in Alexandria, Minn.; White Bear Lake; St. Anthony; Minneapolis; North Branch; and Roberts, Wis.

All of the robberies followed the same method, and the same suspect description was given in each.

In the bank robbery that occurred about 1:15 p.m. Aug. 24 at the Wells Fargo Bank at 4712 Chicago Ave. S. in Minneapolis, Villanuevas is accused of handing the teller a note that stated: “I have a gun. If you don’t give me the money, I will hurt someone.”

While the teller was in the process of obtaining money, Villanuevas reportedly added to the note, writing “quick” and that teller should hand him back the note “or he would hurt someone,” according to the criminal complaint filed in Hennepin County District Court.

The teller handed over $681, and Villanuevas left the bank, the complaint states.

Photos taken from the bank and shared in the media led family members of Villanueva to call the police.

Investigators obtained a search warrant for a “cell phone dump” looking for numbers active near the banks at the time of the robberies, the complaint states. Two cell phone numbers were found to have been in communication near two to three of the banks.

Investigators linked one of the numbers to Villanueva through pawnshop records; the other number was linked to Villanueva’s girlfriend, who was not named in the complaint.

They issued an alert for the girlfriend’s 2014 Ford Fusion and located it in the parking lot of Mystic Lake Casino in Prior Lake on Sept. 3.

Deputies from the Scott County Sheriff’s Office arrested Villanuevas on Sept. 6 and found two notebooks — with pages torn out — in the car. Pen impressions left on subsequent pages were legible and “were consistent with the language in the bank demand notes used in the robberies,” the complaint states.

Villanueva was in custody Tuesday in the Chisago County Jail in Center City, Minn., on an unrelated probation violation.

A Twin Cities psychiatrist faces charges after being accused of having sex with a patient who sought help for past sexual assaults.

Gavin Patrick Meany, 38, of Apple Valley, was charged with two counts of felony third-degree criminal sexual conduct last week in Dakota County District Court.

A woman reported to Burnsville police on Aug. 27 that she had been “abused” over the last five years by Meany while receiving therapy and psychiatric services from him, according to a criminal complaint filed last week.

The woman began seeing Meany at a St. Louis Park clinic because of past trauma that involved prior sexual assaults from her youth, as well as domestic violence from a prior partner, the complaint states.

According to an online profile, since January 2018 Meany had worked as a staff psychiatrist for Counseling Care, which has offices in Burnsville and Lake Elmo. Meany was fired last week, the business said Tuesday.

Meany also has been a division psychiatrist for the Army National Guard since September 2011.

He worked as a psychiatrist for West End Consultation Group in St. Louis Park from December 2016 until March 2018.

According to the criminal complaint:

The woman gave a detailed statement to Burnsville police, as well as physical evidence and documents pertaining to the alleged sexual contact.

She described multiple acts of sexual contact that occurred in the professional offices of Meany, first in St. Louis Park and later in Meany’s office in Burnsville between May 2018 and August 2019.

She also said they had sex at his Apple Valley home in May 2018.

When questioned by an investigator, Meany acknowledged he “crossed boundaries” with the woman and admitted to the sexual activity she described to authorities. He said they had sex at his home while his wife was out of town.

“It is a felony under Minnesota law for a psychotherapist providing professional services to engage in sexual penetration or contact with a patient during a psychotherapy session or outside a psychotherapy session, if the professional relationship still exists,” Dakota County Attorney James Backstrom said in a statement Tuesday.

Meany could not be reached for comment Tuesday, and an attorney was not listed in his court file.

The alleged sexual contact in St. Louis Park is currently under investigation in Hennepin County, according to Dakota County prosecutors.

A Little Canada man confronted a St. Paul police officer with a knife before the officer fatally shot him Sunday, the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension announced Tuesday night.

The BCA, which is conducting the investigation, identified the officer as Steven Mattson, who has been with the department for less than a year.

Mattson was on patrol in the Hamline-Midway neighborhood about 5:50 p.m. Sunday when Ronald Davis, 31, rear-ended his squad while Mattson was stopped at a stop sign at Thomas Avenue and Griggs Street, according to the BCA.

Both men exited their vehicles and Davis brandished a knife, ignoring repeated commands to drop it, the BCA said in a statement. During the confrontation, Mattson shot Davis.

A knife was recovered next to Davis’ body, according to the BCA.

Other officers and St. Paul Fire Department personnel provided first aid to Davis, but he died at the scene.

Mattson’s body camera was activated during the shooting, and St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter has asked Police Chief Todd Axtell to release the footage “as soon as reasonably possible.”

Davis’ family has many questions and wants to see the body-camera footage, said Kevin Richardson, who was in a relationship with Davis’ mother and helped raise Davis from the time he was a baby until he was 8 or 9.

“How did a traffic accident turn into someone’s life being taken?” Richardson said Tuesday. “He would have never, ever jumped out and confronted a police officer with a weapon. I know his character, I know his demeanor. He’s not that kind of way.”

Mattson is on standard administrative leave as the investigation continues.

Mara H. Gottfried contributed to this report.

WARROAD, Minn. — A former northwestern Minnesota police officer entered a plea Monday for abusing his power as an officer so he could stalk, kidnap and sexually assault a teen repeatedly for two years.

Joshua Matthew Demmerly, 30, entered an Alford plea to the felony charges, which means he does not admit guilt but acknowledges there is enough evidence to find him guilty.

A Warroad police officer at the time, Demmerly told the victim, who was 16 years old when the abuse began, that the teen was under investigation for a felony crime and he “was the only thing standing between them and the Roseau County Sheriff’s Office,” according to a statement of probable cause. He reportedly told the teen he wouldn’t execute a search warrant “if the juvenile spent more time with him.”

The victim allegedly tried to avoid Demmerly, but the police officer would repeatedly call and send the teen texts and even threatened suicide if his advances were refused. Demmerly forced the teen to share locations with him via the Find My Friends iPhone app, the statement said.

During an interview on April 1 with the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, the victim described Demmerly’s house and said he had purchased alcohol for teens and told them they could not leave if they were drinking. The victim reportedly awoke naked at Demmerly’s home after a night of drinking and couldn’t remember what had happened. According to the charges, Demmerly sexually assaulted the teen more than 10 times.

Demmerly allegedly stopped the teen’s car and would make the victim get out and kiss him. The teen said Demmerly once turned on the squad car’s lights, turned off the camera and took the victim from a party with others and into the back of his patrol vehicle.

The abuse continued from 2017 until 2019 and the victim told investigators Demmerly was still in contact in late March. The teen had turned 18 when the abuse was reported to the BCA.

Demmerly was arrested on April 1, the same day the teen spoke with investigators. He’s been housed at the Roseau County jail since he was taken into custody. His bond was set at $500,000.

According to his Facebook page, Demmerly began working as a Warroad police officer in February 2016. The profile said he previously worked as a deputy in Roseau County.

Warroad Police Chief Wade Steinbring could not be reached for comment Tuesday. A felony conviction violates the state police standards of conduct.

Demmerly is scheduled for sentencing on Nov. 8. In total, Demmerly could spend up to 55 years in prison on all four charges. The kidnapping charge has a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, third-degree criminal sexual conduct is punishable by up to 15 years behind bars and each of the two stalking charges hold 10 year maximum penalties.

A federal magistrate is recommending that a judge decline to dismiss charges against an Illinois militia leader who was the alleged ringleader behind the 2017 bombing of a Twin Cities mosque.

Michael Hari’s attorneys had argued that four counts against him should be dismissed, saying that Congress exceeded its authority when it enacted a statute that Hari is accused of violating.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Hildy Bowbeer disagreed. A federal judge will now decide whether to adopt her recommendations.

Prosecutors allege Hari and two others drove from Clarence, Ill., to bomb a mosque in Bloomington in hopes of scaring Muslims into leaving the U.S. No one was injured in the August 2017 attack at the Dar al-Farooq Islamic Center.

Hari is also charged in a failed bombing of a women’s clinic in Illinois.

A 43-year-old east-central Minnesota man was arrested after one of his passengers died when his SUV plunged into the Kettle River on Monday afternoon in Pine County.

Law enforcement responded to the scene at approximately 3:45 p.m. Monday. They recovered the body of a 47-year-old Pine County man from the submerged Ford Escape a few hours later.

The SUV’s driver was arrested and potentially faces a charge of criminal vehicular operation, according to a news release from the Pine County sheriff’s office.

The driver and other passenger, a 48-year-old man from Pine County, were outside of the submerged SUV when law enforcement arrived at the scene on a road leading to the Kettle River near the community of Willow River.

A dive team located the vehicle submerged in 14 feet of water and recovered the man’s body from it around 6 p.m. The body was transported to the Midwest Medical Examiner’s Office for autopsy.

Law enforcement arrested the vehicle’s driver. He may be formally charged after the Pine County attorney reviews the incident, according to the news release.

A Minneapolis man has been charged with attempted murder and assault after he allegedly choked his girlfriend and set her on fire this week.

The criminal complaint says the woman escaped and drove herself to North Memorial Medical Center while her hair and body were still smoldering. She’s now in a medically induced coma after Monday’s attack in the 5100 block of Colfax Avenue North.

Hennepin County prosecutors charged 46-year-old Richard Bullock on Wednesday. Court records do not list an attorney to comment on his behalf.

According to the complaint, a woman who saw the attack says Bullock and his girlfriend were drinking and arguing in an RV when he began punching her and strangling her repeatedly, causing her to pass out multiple times.

He then doused his girlfriend with rubbing alcohol and lit her on fire, engulfing her in flames.