5 shot in 3 separate shootings in Minneapolis, 1 dead

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - Minneapolis police are investigating three separate shootings that left one man dead and others injured early Saturday morning.

According to police, at about 1:17 a.m. Saturday, officers heard shots in the area of 2nd Avenue North and 3rd Avenue North. When they arrived, officers found a man suffering from non-life threatening injuries. The man was transported to the hospital. No one is in custody.

Due to the amount of activity at the scene, there were 13 squads on site.

Just a few hours later, at about 3:21 a.m., officers responded to a ShotSpotter activation on the 1000 block of West Lyndale Avenue North. When they arrived, they found a man suffering from a critical gunshot wound. He died at the scene.

Police say the shooting happened outside a large gathering, and the amount of activity also required about a dozen squads.

"Preliminary investigation leads us to believe that this is a confrontation between two people known to each other, and it escalated into a shooting," Minneapolis police spokesperson John Elder told reporters on Saturday. "This happened outside of a very large gathering or party."

Witnesses told police that another man was shot and that someone had driven him to the hospital. A short time later, hospital staff called and reported that a man had just arrived suffering from a non-life-threatening gunshot wound.

Finally, at about 4:17 a.m., staff from North Memorial Health called police to report that a gunshot victim drove into the emergency area. The victim told officials he had been shot while driving in the area of 33rd Avenue North and Irving Avenue North. His injuries are considered non-life threatening.

No one is in custody.

Police say the three shootings are not related.

Anyone with information is encouraged to call CrimeStoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).

The violence Saturday morning put a strain on Minneapolis police resources. In recent weeks, Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo has called on the city to increase the size of his force.