Black Man Shot and Killed by Minneapolis Police While Armed with Handgun

Wednesday morning a Black man was shot and killed by a white Minneapolis Police while being served an arrest warrant, reported the Star Tribune. Interim police Chief Amelia Huffman said the SWAT team was in the area on behalf of St. Paul police to find someone connected to a homicide. Within nine seconds of entering the apartment, an officer had fired shots.

Police have not released the name of the victim but their family identified him as Amir Locke via social media, reported local news. The medical examiner’s office is expected to release the details of Locke’s death. City documents identify Mark Hanneman as the shooter, according to local news.

Huffman said this is a call no police chief wants to receive, via Star Tribune.

From the Star Tribune:

Huffman said that officers entered the secured building and went directly to the target apartment, which residents said was on the seventh floor, and entered using a key fob. “They loudly and repeatedly announced ‘police search warrant,’ before they crossed the threshold into the apartment, and ongoing as they made entry,” she said. “Just over nine seconds after they had made entry into the apartment, the officers encountered a male who was armed with a handgun. He was holding that gun in his hand at the time that shots were fired.”

Police have not confirmed if the warrant was issued for the victim. Residents told reporters they did not hear the incident happen, via the Star Tribune.

Huffman said Locke was armed with a loaded 5.7 millimeter handgun, per the Star Tribune. Locke’s family confirmed via social media that he was licensed to carry. After Hanneman fired shots, the other officers on the scene tended to the man and carried him to the paramedics. Locke died later at a local hospital, reported the Star Tribune. Per the incident report, Locke was shot twice in the chest and once in the wrist, via local news.

Though the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension will investigate the shooting, there is still tension between Minneapolis residents and law enforcement following the murder of George Floyd.

From the Star Tribune:

The shooting comes at a crossroads for the city’s police force, which is still trying to reform itself after Floyd’s death death at the hands of Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, who has since been convicted of his murder. The May 2020 killing set off worldwide protests and reignited debate about what policing should be in the United States. Three other officers are currently on trial in federal court; Chauvin previously pleaded guilty to the federal charges against him.

A Council committee held a meeting following the shooting to discuss a study on police staffing. More details regarding the homicide in connection to the search warrant are currently unknown, according to the Star Tribune.