1 Dead, 2 Hurt In 3 Separate St. Paul Shootings; Gun Violence Up Over Last Year, Police Say
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- One woman is dead and another is in grave condition following a night of violence in St. Paul.
The St. Paul Police Department says that overnight there were three shootings in as many hours in the capital city. The fatal shooting happened around 3:30 a.m. on the 800 block of Cook Avenue, in the city's Payne-Phalen neighborhood.
Officers arrived to find a woman in front of a house. They attempted to address her wounds, but she was pronounced dead at the scene. Her death marks the 23rd homicide of the year. She was later identified as 41-year-old Anna M. Wagener of St. Paul.
A police K-9 tried to track a suspect, but was unsuccessful. Officers are still looking for the shooter, police say.
Earlier in the night, there were two other shootings. The first happened around 12:45 a.m. near the intersection of Sherburne Avenue and Rice Street, just north of the Capitol. A woman was shot and is currently in grave condition at Regions Hospital.
About 10 minutes later, another shooting occurred at the intersection of Victoria Street and Charles Avenue, in the Summit-University neighborhood. A man suffered non-life-threatening injuries and is expected to be OK.
According to police, there are no connections between the three shootings.
So far this year, gun violence is up in St. Paul. Compared to last year, reports of shots fired are up 130%, 144 people have been shot (relative to 86 at this time in 2019) and there've been 23 homicides (relative to 15 at this time last year).
Police spokesman Steve Linders says that all the violence is wearing on homicide investigators. "We take it personally," he told reporters early Thursday morning.
According to Linders, investigators have solved 20 of the city's 23 homicides. He says the public's help is needed to solve the latest crimes, as Thursday's death is the second fatal shooting in St. Paul this week.
