Teen Shot and Killed at Downtown Minneapolis Light Rail Stop
A submitted photo shows officers at the scene of a fatal shooting at the Nicollet Mall Light Rail station in downtown Minneapolis on Tuesday, Aug. 2, 2022.
MINNEAPOLIS—Police have confirmed that a teenage male victim was fatally shot at the Nicollet Mall Light Rail platform downtown around 5:30 p.m. Tuesday.
Police found the victim with a critical gunshot wound at the platform, and images later shared with MN CRIME showed a white sheet covering the victim’s body.
Officers attempted life-saving measures but the victim died at the scene. The age and identify of the victim have not yet been confirmed.
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According to a media release from MPD, Metro Transit officials immediately circulated images of the incident from surveillance cameras at the station to local law enforcement agencies.
A description of a person of interest was also shared with the agency’s bus and train operators.
A bus operator later saw someone who matched the description and reported it to the Metro Transit control center, MPD said.
University of Minnesota officers responded and arrested the person of interest, who has not yet been officially identified. Sources tell us that a firearm was also recovered from the person of interest when he was arrested by two UMPD officers in the area of Father Hennepin Bluff Park.
MPD says that Initial information indicates that the deceased teen and the person of interest may have known each other. Investigators canvassed the area and collected evidence as the immediate area was shut down for several hours.
The teen’s death is the 53rd homicide in the city of Minneapolis so far this year.
UPDATE — Thursday, Aug. 4
A Saint Paul juvenile has been charged for the shooting. Tashawn Powell, 17, was charged with intentional murder in the second degree.
Powell is scheduled to make his first appearance Thursday at 1:30 p.m.
According to the charge, on August 2, police were dispatched to the Nicollet Mall light rail station. There, they discovered a 15-year-old male lying on the platform with a large amount of blood flowing from his mouth and chest. Both police and a civilian bystander attempted lifesaving medical care. Paramedics arrived shortly after and declared the victim dead. Police found a discharged cartridge casing near the victim's body.
Police were able to view Metro Transit video footage of the shooting, the petition continues. Police then aired a description of the subject, noting that he might have boarded a Metro Transit bus. Police located the bus and spoke with the bus driver, who said that an individual matching the suspect's description had recently exited the bus. They searched the area and found Powell, who matched the description from the video.
Police arrested Powell and conducted a search of his person. They found that Powell was carrying a handgun that was the same caliber as the discharged cartridge casing. Powell subsequently admitted to shooting the victim and that the handgun he was carrying was the one used to shoot him.
The Hennepin County Attorney's Office will seek to have Powell tried as an adult.
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