Minneapolis Shooting Suspect Was Facing Eviction After Gun Incidents

In a press conference early Thursday afternoon, Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension Superintendent Drew Evans announced his agency will be leading the investigation. Evans says the suspect is believed to be 35-year-old Carlton Neal Johnson, but that still needs confirmation from the Hennepin County Medical Examiner's Office. Evans said the autopsy is underway, and believes "he died in an exchange of gunfire.

Interim Minneapolis Police Chief Bill Peterson said during a Wednesday news conference that police were familiar with the suspected shooter. Peterson and Mayor Jacob Frey gave an update on the conditions of the injured officers later Thursday afternoon. Officer Joseph Michnowski underwent surgery Wednesday after he was shot in the stomach.

He's still hospitalized as of late Thursday afternoon. Officer Yahye Ahmed, who was shot in the leg, was released from the hospital early Thursday afternoon. A third officer was also injured at the scene by glass when he smashed the window of a locked squad car in order to disable its siren.

Evans also confirmed the identities of the two residents who were killed: 61-year-old Muse Afrah and 63-year-old Dale Henry Spry.

Johnson signed a lease at the Shoreline Plaza complex, formerly known as Loring Towers, on 15 East Grant Street in March 2025. On June 16, a law firm representing the apartment sent him a letter informing him that his lease would be terminated on June 29. The letter listed six incidents starting in January, including one in March in which Johnson allegedly "assaulted a resident on the premises. On June 11, Johnson entered the management office and openly displayed a firearm to staff members, the eviction notice states.

Around that same time, he made multiple statements to residents that he had obtained a new gun. Two days later, the letter says Johnson flashed his gun to people on a nearby sidewalk. According to court filings, Johnson contacted the apartment management and asked for a second chance.

A letter sent by the law firm informs him not to display a gun to others on the building premises and comply with Minnesota conceal and carry laws. The eviction complaint says Johnson "continued to breach the lease and last chance directive. On June 19, Johnson made "concerning verbal statements about using a gun to a security officer while lifting up his shirt and showing his firearm.

Then on June 25, Johnson walked around the block with his firearm visible and brandished a firearm at another resident in the common area. The complaint says police were called, and Johnson attempted to bribe staff to tell him who called police. According to the Hennepin County Attorney's Office, police said Johnson, who had a legal permit to carry, displayed the weapon but it did not leave his waistband.

Officials determined he could not be charged due to insufficient evidence. Sources told WCCO that Johnson had been evicted from his apartment earlier Wednesday. Court documents also show Johnson was scheduled for a trial and had a hearing on Sept.

11. Documents show Johnson was also the subject of a restraining order. The 27-year-old mother of his child said that between March 6, 2023 and March 10, 2023, he had sent over 120 text messages with "vulgar insults and threats" from 10 different phone numbers. Brian Swedberg says he was smoking behind the apartment building when he heard gunfire.

He rushed upstairs back to his apartment, but before he could get there he came across two people hurt on the first floor. He also heard a third person behind a door, seemingly injured, calling 911. "I'm former military and a Marine and I was set off, Swedberg said. "I mean, my head was on a swivel and the anxiety kicked in a little bit, but I just started praying and b-lining and being done.

Swedberg says he was stuck inside his apartment for more than 15 hours. The manager of the Nicollet Diner right across the street from the apartment complex tells WCCO they had to lock down for two hours with employees and customers inside. For anonymous, confidential help, people can call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1- or 1-.