Deadly downtown Minneapolis shooting started as a custody exchange

Key Points:

• The deadly shooting in downtown Minneapolis began as a custody exchange involving suspect Carlton Johnson II, who fatally shot three people and injured six others before dying in a gunfire exchange with police at Shoreline Plaza.
• Johnson initially shot the child’s mother outside the building, then wounded two employees inside, and later shot two residents on the ninth floor, where he lived; investigators are examining if the victims were specifically targeted.
• Minneapolis police responded swiftly with over 150 officers, including SWAT, entering the building within minutes despite encountering gunfire and a haze that injured two officers; one officer remains hospitalized.
• Authorities identified the two deceased residents as Dale Henry Spry, 63, and Muse Abdi Afrah, 61; the mother of Johnson’s child and two employees are recovering, while two officers injured by gunfire have been treated and released or remain hospitalized.
• Police and community leaders highlighted the role of domestic violence as a contributing factor in the incident, with Johnson reportedly challenging an eviction order and the shooting linked to ongoing domestic conflict.