Cannon Falls police standoff ends, suspect is dead

CANNON FALLS, Minn. (FOX 9) - Police say the suspect in a shooting at a Cannon Falls, Minnesota home that sparked a multi-hour standoff Wednesday afternoon has been found dead after SWAT teams forced their way into the house. 

In a release shortly before 6 p.m., officers said the "suspect from the shooting today was confirmed deceased inside the residence."

Police and SWAT teams swarmed the home at the corner of 1st Street North and Hoffman Street West after a reported shooting around 11:30 a.m. When officers arrived at the scene, they say they found a 26-year-old woman who had been shot. Police got the woman to a safe area before she was taken by ambulance to a nearby hospital. 

With fears the suspect was barricaded inside the home with a gun, police established a perimeter in the area with the county issuing a shelter-in-place order. As of 6 p.m., that order has been lifted.

Police also said they worked with Cannon Falls Schools to ensure students were safe. The home is just down the block and around the corner from the school.

SWAT team enters home

Shortly after 3:30 p.m., police used a SWAT vehicle, with a boom attached to the front, to ram open the home's front door.

Soon after, the same vehicle was used to break out a set of windows on the first floor.

About an hour later, FOX 9 saw SWAT teams making entry into the home. By about 5 p.m., officers were milling around the house and going about their business without extensive precautions, as if the situation was under control.

About an hour later, officers announced the suspect had been found dead. The circumstances of his death were unclear.

While the threat is over, police say the investigation at the home will be ongoing for several hours, including help from the Minnesota BCA.

There has been no update on the condition of the woman who was shot.

Neighbors react to shooting

It was a stunning sight for residents who live in the Cannon Falls neighborhood, watching police break down a window and the front door to get inside the home.

"I've never seen this many cops in Cannon Falls," said Toni Carlson.

"Nothing ever happens. People get pulled over for headlights or something like that, but we don't see anything like this ever," said Braden Hartl, who lives two doors down from the home.

Hartl was at work when he heard his neighborhood was at the center of a crime scene.

"A coworker came up to me and said, ‘Hey, do you hear that there was a shooting in Cannon Falls?’" Hartl said.

"I was a little worried. We don't lock our doors or anything. I mean, it's a pretty quiet small town. We never worry about anything," Hartl said.

"I had to talk to the police so we could go home and put our groceries away. So I mean, it was kind of a different deal," Hartl said.