The man armed with an AK-47 rifle who terrorized a South Minneapolis neighborhood overnight Friday was identified as Nathan Maelstrom Matz, 40, of Minneapolis.
He was shot by police after he fired the assault-style rifle inside his apartment building and holed up in a stairwell. He is still hospitalized in stable condition at Hennepin County Medical Center. The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, which is investigating the officer-involved shooting, said that he is expected to survive his injuries.
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara gave the following details of the incident in an earlier press release:
It began Friday night about 10:50 p.m. when several people called 911 to report a man with a shotgun walking near the 4000 block of Minnehaha Avenue South. When officers arrived, they could not find the man. Several hours later, at about 4:40 a.m., several people in the same area called 911 to report shots fired. Many of the callers live in an apartment building on that block and said they could hear shots being fired inside their building, someone knocking on their doors and breaking glass.
When officers arrived, they found bullet holes in the front door of the apartment building and shell casings on the floor. Inside an open apartment door, they found a shotgun on the floor. Officers heard more gunfire and immediately evacuated residents of the building. The shooter holed up in a stairwell during the evacuation and while SWAT and negotiation teams moved in. During this time, the man continued to fire rounds from the rifle.
About 5:30 a.m., an officer armed with a rifle shot the gunman and police were able to enter the stairwell and disarm him of the assault weapon and a .45-caliber handgun. Authorities later found a backpack with additional ammunition and loaded magazines in the stairwell. The man, who was wearing a military-style flak vest, was identified as a resident of the building.
— Kristi Miller
Rosemount man dies in motorcycle collision
A Rosemount man died Saturday after colliding with a fellow motorcyclist in Rock Elm Township in Wisconsin, the Pierce County Sheriff’s Office said in a media release.
The man was identified as David Rea, 54, and was pronounced dead at the scene. The other driver involved in the crash was Shawn Stuttgen, 48, of Eagan.
According to the sheriff’s office, Stuttgen was transported by helicopter to Mayo Hospital in Eau Claire, Wis., with undetermined injuries.
Patrol Lt. Andrew Thoms said he did not have an update on Stuttgen’s condition Monday.
Rea was driving a 2013 Harley-Davidson motorcycle westbound on Wisconsin 72 about 4:30 p.m. when he struck Stuttgen’s motorcycle near County Road S in Rock Elm Township. Thoms said the drivers were traveling together.
The sheriff’s office is still in the early stages of investigating the crash, but it appears one motorcycle “turned into the other motorcycle,” Thoms said.
— Maddie Robinson
Cottage Grove man drowns in St. Croix
A Cottage Grove man drowned Sunday at Kinnickinnic State Park after he dived off a moored pontoon on the St. Croix River and did not resurface, officials with the Pierce County Sheriff’s Office said in western Wisconsin.
The man was identified as Keith Taylor, 66. The drowning occurred around 1:25 p.m.
“Family and friends were able to quickly recover Mr. Taylor’s body and start life saving measures, which continued after first responders arrived,” authorities said in a statement.
Taylor was later pronounced dead at the scene. The incident remains under investigation.
— Mary Divine
Childish Gambino postpones Xcel date
Donald Glover took to social media Monday to announce the rest of his current tour under his musical stage name Childish Gambino has been postponed, including an Oct. 2 stop at St. Paul’s Xcel Energy Center.
“Unfortunately I have to postpone the rest of the North American tour to focus on my physical health for a few weeks,” Glover wrote on X, formerly Twitter. “Hold onto your tickets. ALL tickets will be honored for the upcoming dates in North America when they are rescheduled. Thanks for the privacy. Thanks for the support. Thanks for the love.”
As of Monday afternoon, Ticketmaster’s event page offered no further details about potential refunds. A spokesperson for the X had nothing to add beyond Glover’s statement.
Glover is known for his television and film work on “30 Rock,” “Community,” “Atlanta” and “Solo: A Star Wars Story.” He released “Camp,” his first album as Childish Gambino, in 2011. His singles “Redbone” and “This Is America” were both certified platinum five times over.
— Ross Raihala
Trooper in fatal May crash has left agency
Shane Roper, the Minnesota state trooper charged in a May fatal crash in Rochester, is no longer employed by the agency.
The State Patrol said Roper’s last day of employment with the agency was last Tuesday.
The State Patrol did not clarify whether Roper was terminated or if he resigned. Roper was previously placed on paid administrative leave.
Roper is facing nine criminal charges in Olmsted County District Court, including felony counts of second-degree manslaughter, criminal vehicular homicide and criminal vehicular operation.
He pleaded not guilty to the charges in August.
Motorist Olivia Flores, 18, of Owatonna, was killed in the crash near the Apache Mall on May 18.
Prosecutors said that Roper, while pursuing a driver “suspected of committing a petty traffic offense,” was traveling at 83 mph in a 40-mph zone without his emergency lights activated
— Forum News Service