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2030 North Arlington Avenue • Duluth, Minnesota 55811 • www.duluthmn.gov
Public Information Officer, Mattie Hjelseth at (218) 730-5434 or mhjelseth@duluthmn.gov
SUBJECT: Two Juveniles Charged in Felony Damage to Property Incidents
BY: Duluth Police Department Public Information Officer Ron Tinsley (218) 730-5722
NATURE OF INCIDENT: Media/Public Notification
CASE NO.:
INCIDENT DATE: 2/1/2016
INCIDENT TIME:
INCIDENT LOCATION: Duluth area
In late February and early March 2016, the Duluth Police Department responded to numerous reports of windows being shot out with a BB gun. This included vehicle, residence, and business windows. Additionally, two pedestrians reported being shot with a BB gun by a passing vehicle.
In combined rashes of BB gun damage, over 50 incidents were reported in Duluth, a large portion of them occurring in the East Hillside area. Superior also had many similar incidents. In addition to causing thousands of dollars in property damage, these incidents of random and wanton disregard for the property and safety of others had a significant impact in the quality of life enjoyed by members of our communities.
In one of the incidents, a suspect vehicle was captured on video surveillance. Witnesses provided similar vehicle descriptions at other locations.
Follow-up investigation by Duluth and Superior police resulted in the identification of the involved vehicle and the identification of two juvenile suspects.
Juvenile Delinquency Petitions have now been filed in Saint Louis County District Court charging a 16 year old male and a 17 year old male with two counts of felony drive-by shooting and felony criminal damage to property in the 1st degree.
The successful conclusion to this investigation is the result of a large collaborative effort. It involved information sharing from multiple sources including investigators from both the Duluth and Superior Police Departments; patrol officers and school resources officers; and members of the public.