A Minneapolis officer hailed as a hero last year was ambushed and killed by a gunman while responding to another shooting, police said.
Officer Jamal Mitchell, 36, was one of two people killed Thursday in a pair of shootings that left four others wounded, authorities reported.
The gunman, identified by Minnesota authorities on Sunday as Mustafa Ahmed Mohamed, 35, was also killed.
Police initially responded to a call about two people shot at an apartment building in Minneapolis' Whittier neighborhood around 5:15 p.m. Thursday. Upon arrival, officers were immediately fired upon and returned fire, according to Assistant Police Chief Katie Blackwell.
Mitchell and the suspect were killed, and another officer was injured, Blackwell said. Authorities later discovered three other civilians who had been shot, one of whom died at the scene.
The suspect and the other victim, identified as Osman Said Jimale, 32, both died of "multiple gunshot wounds," as confirmed by the Hennepin County Medical Examiner's Office.
Among the four surviving injured, a Minneapolis police officer and a firefighter sustained non-life-threatening injuries and have since been treated and released, Blackwell reported.
The other two victims, one shot in his vehicle and another found in an apartment, suffered life-threatening injuries and remained hospitalized as of Friday afternoon.
'A hero, a son, a father, a fiancé' was killed
Just three days after being sworn into the police department in 2023, Mitchell, along with another officer, rescued an elderly couple from a burning, smoke-filled house. The rookie Minneapolis cop told CNN he didn't hesitate to go in.
"We're not trained to run into fires, but we are trained to put others' lives in front of ours," Mitchell said last year. "So when we found out possibly that someone was in that house, we didn't second guess running in."
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Officer Jamal Mitchell, center, is honored with a Lifesaving Award by Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara during a ceremony on October 4, 2023. |
In his final moments on Thursday, the young officer responded to a shooting and tried to render first aid to those injured, authorities said. One of the people he was trying to help turned out to be the gunman who would kill him.
"Mitchell was attempting to assist the individual that shot him," said Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension Superintendent Drew Evans. "It happened very fast... he ambushed him."
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey described Mitchell as "a hero, a son, a father, a fiancé, and an officer who was deeply committed to protecting and serving." Frey added, "He would run towards danger when the rest of us would run in the other direction."
Although he was a Minneapolis officer for less than two years, Mitchell made a profound impact on the department. Assistant Police Chief Katie Blackwell noted, "I've never met an officer that received an award on the third day on the job."
Mayor Frey emphasized, "The officer gave the ultimate sacrifice to protect and save the lives of others. We will honor his sacrifice. We will remember his name. We will never forget what he did for the people of our city."
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara, speaking early Friday morning, said, "There are not words to appropriately describe this tragedy. It’s the worst call a police chief can receive." O'Hara, who knew Mitchell personally, added, "He died a hero. He died doing what we asked him to do for the rest of us."
The motive remains unclear
Authorities are still trying to determine what prompted the gunfire that led to the shootout and the deaths of two victims. Homicide detectives are investigating the motive.
Witness Reuben Molina was watching TV with his girlfriend in a third-floor apartment when he heard a "bang." "Then we heard it again and again and again in rapid succession, and then me and her were like, 'Oh, that's gunshots,'" Molina told CNN affiliate WCCO. He said he thought the sounds came from the floor below them.
Molina and his girlfriend left the apartment to see what was happening. He reported hearing continuous gunshots and saw "people shooting," but couldn't determine whether the shooters were officers or civilians.
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Law enforcement officers gather on Franklin Avenue in Minneapolis after two people were killed and several others were wounded Thursday. |
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"When officers arrived, they were immediately met with gunfire and returned fire," said Assistant Police Chief Katie Blackwell.
Two officers, Nick Kapinos and Luke Kittock, who engaged the suspect, are on critical incident leave, according to a Sunday news release from the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension. Kapinos has 10 years of law enforcement experience, while Kittock has nine. Kittock was injured during the exchange but was later treated and released from the hospital, authorities said.
Forensic scientists are collecting evidence, and the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension is collaborating with Minneapolis police to determine the circumstances surrounding the shooting. Authorities said Friday they are still working on establishing a timeline of the incident.
"There is both body-worn and squad car camera video of this incident," the bureau said in the Sunday news release. "Agents are reviewing all available video as part of their active investigation."
CNN has reached out to the Minneapolis Police Department for more information.
‘This cannot be the norm’
Across the country, the US has suffered at least 180 mass shootings in the first five months of this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive. Like CNN, the archive defines a mass shooting as one in which four or more people are shot, not including the shooter.
In the first four months of this year, at least 136 officers have been shot in the line of duty, including 20 who were killed, according to the National Fraternal Order of Police.
"This cannot be the norm," Minnesota Governor Tim Walz said Thursday night.
"It’s now happened four times in the last couple of months where we’ve had public safety officers responding to 911 calls, rushing into dangerous situations, and in this case being ambushed, resulting in the loss of Officer Mitchell."
Even though Minneapolis is "strong" and "resilient," the mayor said, "We have to do everything possible to ensure that these tragic events, this epidemic of gun violence, never happen again."
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