According to authorities, there may be a connection between two weekend shootings at homeless encampments in Minneapolis that left three people dead and three injured.
According to a statement from Minneapolis police, the first happened just before 4:45 a.m. on Saturday. Two men were injured and one man was killed.
According to a separate police statement, another triple shooting happened on Sunday at approximately 2:20 p.m. at an encampment near railroad tracks on the 4400 block between Hiawatha and Snelling avenues.
Despite efforts to save their lives, two males were declared dead at the scene, according to authorities.
“This is the second triple shooting at two separate homeless encampments in two days,” police stated. “MPD has not ruled out the possibility that this shooting and the triple shooting that occurred on October 26th are related.”
According to officials, a woman also suffered critical injuries. On Monday, police did not disclose any information regarding her condition.
Police stated that they were looking into the possibility that suspects may have escaped the incident on foot on Sunday. After being imprisoned at first, three guys were later cleared and freed.
According to the police, no one has been arrested as of Monday afternoon. The encampments are located in the same precinct and are fewer than 4 miles apart.
While violent crime is declining in some parts of the city, violence in and around homeless encampments has increased, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey told the media. He described the shootings as “incredibly tragic and sad” and attributed the spike to fentanyl.
“This is not about a lack of shelter, not even, most of the time, about a lack of housing, the issues that we’re seeing in terms of crime and violence — it’s about fentanyl,” Frey stated. “It is about a drug that takes ahold of your body and your mind like nothing that we’ve ever seen before.”
According to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 70% of the over 107,000 drug overdose deaths that occurred last year were caused by synthetic opioids, primarily fentanyl.
The medical examiner reported that the individual deceased on Saturday was Deven Leonard Caston, age 31. According to the study, Caston suffered numerous gunshot wounds and died in a homicide.
According to the medical examiner, Christopher Washington, 38, and Louis Lemons Jr., 32, passed away on Sunday from numerous gunshot wounds.
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In a statement, Police Chief Brian O’Hara lamented that encampments were unsafe and referred to the shootings as “outrageous.”
“The cold-blooded killing of three people inside the tent of an encampment is outrageous,” he stated. “All human life matters and encampments are not safe.”
“To help end this cycle of violence that is exacerbated by narcotics and mental health issues, it is crucial that the residents of these encampments accept the resources that are available,” O’Hara stated.
