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Suspect in Roseville shootout struggled with mental health
The 53-year-old man accused of opening fire on police officer and neighboring homes this week in Roseville suffered from mental health troubles for years prior to the act of violence on Tuesday, court records show.
ROSEVILLE, Minn. (FOX 9) - The man who police say fired dozens of shots towards neighboring homes and police in a quiet neighborhood in Roseville, Minnesota on Tuesday had a long history of mental health troubles, court records show.
In a release on Thursday, the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension identified the shooter as 53-year-old Jesse Henri Werling. Werling died at a hospital Tuesday night after being shot by police.
A truck window shot out during the active shooter situation in Roseville, Minnesota on April 5, 2022. (FOX 9)
Active shooter in Roseville
Police were called out shortly after 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, April 5 for the reports of shots fired along West Owasso Boulevard near Lake Owasso.
When police got on scene, they say the suspect continued to fire shots toward police and neighboring homes. During this time, police say Officer Ryan Duxbury was shot in the face. Officer Duxbury was rushed to Regions Hospital for treatment. He underwent surgery Friday to remove a bullet from his neck and is continuing to recover at the hospital, the chief said.
The BCA says Werling continued to fire shots at officers pulling up to the scene.
At some point, after Werling had fired around 100 rounds, two Roseville officers fired shots, hitting Werling. The BCA says those officers were identified as Officer Boua Chang and Officer Bryan Anderson.
Near Werling's body, the BCA recovered a .22 caliber scoped lever-action rifle.
Roseville Police Officer Ryan Duxbury (Supplied)
History of mental health
A 2015 St. Croix County court record shows a call to police by the suspect’s ex-wife. In it, she claims he had phoned her in the middle of the night, screaming and saying he was taking her to the "underworld." He was arrested for disorderly conduct.
But there were other calls too, like a disorderly in Stillwater for kicking in a door in December of 2020. In March of this year, the suspect's mother called North Hudson police saying her son stole a rifle from her home and was delusional and not making sense at the time.
With the suspect living in Roseville, police there were called, but an officer said there was an alert on his name for mental health cautions related to resisting police and danger and that he "did not feel comfortable approaching the residence" if he had a rifle with a scope.
It’s unclear what happened after that or if it was the same gun used in Tuesday night’s shooting. The suspect agreed to a civil commitment for treatment in 2019 and was at the hospital for several months.
In all Roseville police say they’ve had 15 interactions with Werling; many were calls for mental health issues.
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Roseville police officer shot, suspect dies at hospital
A Roseville police officer was injured after shots were fired Tuesday evening at a home near Lake Owasso, according to Roseville Police. The man who shot at police, a 43-year-old from Roseville, was also injured and later died at the hospital.
Damage left behind in neighborhood
The dozens of rounds fired Tuesday night left widespread damage in the neighborhood. Our cameras spotted bullets holes in homes, car windows, and other structures near the scene.
After the shooting, police went home to home to see if anyone else was injured during the shooting. But, there were no other reported injuries.