2024-02-19T14:10:10+00:00
A-
A
A+
/ Minnesota State Police announced on Monday that three of its men and a paramedic were killed and injured after they tried to rescue several children from an armed man inside a house in the state.
The police said, according to media outlets monitored by Agency: “The shooter, whose identity was not revealed, was also killed,” adding that “seven children between the ages of two and 15 were rescued.”
The victims, two 27-year-old police officers and a 40-year-old paramedic, were shot after responding to what Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz called a “distress call for a family in danger” from a home in Burnsville, a city south of Minneapolis.
Another police officer sustained non-life-threatening injuries during the exchange of gunfire.
“The emergency team received a call at approximately 1:50 a.m. (0750 GMT) Sunday from inside a Burnsville home regarding ‘an armed man barricaded with his family members,'” said Drew Evans, an official with the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension.
The gunman opened fire from inside following negotiations with police.
According to Evans, at least one officer was shot inside the home, and several weapons were found inside the home, but police have not determined what type they were, whether they were handguns or semi-automatic rifles.
“We are in the early stages of the investigation,” Evans added.
CBS News footage showed an armored vehicle at the scene with at least seven bullet holes in its windshield.
“Today, three of our team members made the ultimate sacrifice for this community. They are heroes,” Burnsville Police Chief Tanya Schwartz told reporters.
Shootings are common in the United States, where one-third of adults own a firearm.