Rochester Officer Fatally Shoots Robbery Suspect Wielding Ax
A still image from MnDOT traffic camera shows police responding to the scene on Hwy. 63 early Saturday, July 30.
ROCHESTER—Police here say an officer shot a suspect wielding an ax early Saturday morning after a traffic stop on Hwy. 63.
The white male suspect was believed to have robbed a business while armed with the ax, around 11 p.m. on the 2000 block of Broadway Ave. S.
Police say the suspect entered the business with the ax, took cash and fled the scene in a van.
The suspect was found around 12:45 a.m. Saturday and was stopped by an officer on Hwy. 63 just south of the Hwy. 52 overpass. Police say the suspect got out of the van while armed with the ax and charged toward the officer.
The officer then shot the suspect. Multiple chest wound seals were applied at the scene and the suspect was transported to the hospital, but later died of his injuries, police confirmed.
The officer involved in the shooting has been with the Rochester Police Department just over a year and was an officer at another agency previously, the department said.
The Bureau of Criminal Apprehension is investigating the incident, which is standard operating procedure for any officer-involved shooting in the state.
Authorities have not yet released the name of the suspect who was shot. There were no officers injured during the incident.
It hasn’t been released if body camera video or squad camera video captured the traffic stop and shooting.
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