Innocent bystander killed during rolling gun battle and crash in downtown Minneapolis
By MN Crime Watch, October 7, 2021, Updated
UPDATE: Family has identified the woman killed as 18 year-old Autumn Merrick.
A rolling gun battle that stretched for blocks through downtown Minneapolis on Wednesday night resulted in the death of an innocent bystander when the vehicles finally crashed in the North Loop striking a young woman riding a razor scooter on the sidewalk.
The incident began with a report of about 50 shots heard near 18th and Nicollet Avenue South about 11:09 p.m.
Within two minutes, another dispatch was aired about a crash, vehicle fire, and possible shots fired at 6th Avenue North and 5th Street North in the North Loop area of downtown Minneapolis.
As police arrived at the crash site, they told the dispatcher that CPR was being performed on one apparent victim. Videos posted online from a bystander at the scene at the time appear to show police performing CPR on a female lying on the ground.
(Still frame from online video)
Information continued to be dispatched to police about witnesses who said the occupants of the vehicles had been seen shooting at each other near Lasalle Avenue and Oak Grove Street, at the southern edge of downtown in the Loring Park neighborhood.
After the eventual crash, witnesses later reported to police that the gun battle began at Family Dollar on the 1800 block of Nicollet Avenue, the first location of the report of 50 shots heard.
We were provided with a photo of the aftermath of the scene from a follower. We’ve covered the location of the body of the person on which police were performing CPR (foreground). The body had been covered by a tarp by the time this photo was taken, below.
The Minneapolis Police Department released a statement on Thursday morning in which they called the death of the adult female a homicide, the city’s 74th reportable homicide this year:
On October 6th, 2021 at 11:08 pm, Officers from the 5th Precinct responded to the report of multiple shots fired near the 1800 block of Nicollet Ave S. Preliminary information from individuals in the area indicates that the gunfire was related in part to an altercation between the occupants of two or more vehicles. Officers on scene investigated to determine the full scope of what occurred. (21–230382)
At 11:10 pm, Officers from the 1st Precinct along with Metro Transit Police responded to the report of a motor vehicle crash involving two vehicles at the intersection of 5th St N and 6th Ave N.
Preliminary information indicates that the two vehicles were traveling at a high rate of speed with gunfire coming from one or both vehicles just prior to the crash. Evidence of gunfire was in the roadway extending two blocks from 5th St N and 6th Ave N. As a result of the crash, one of the vehicles left the roadway and struck an adult female riding a scooter on the sidewalk. The adult female died at the scene.
Multiple adult males were transported to the hospital. All the males had serious injuries apparently stemming from the motor vehicle crash. Guns were recovered from both vehicles and from the scene.
Vehicle descriptions associated with the scene on Nicollet match the vehicles located at the 6th Ave N crash scene. The similar vehicle descriptions lead investigators to believe that the two scenes are related. Arrests and charges for the involved parties are yet to be determined.
Personnel from the Minneapolis Crime Scene Division and the Minneapolis Traffic Investigation Unit responded to document the scene and collect evidence. Minneapolis homicide investigators responded and started an investigation.
The Hennepin County Medical Examiner will release the identity of the female victim along with the cause and nature of death.
This death has been declared a homicide. This is the 74th homicide for 2021. The GO# associated with the motor vehicle crash is 21–230383. Anyone with information about this case is encouraged to call Crimestoppers at 1–800–222-TIPS (8477). Tips may be submitted electronically at CrimeStoppersMN.org. All tips are anonymous and persons providing information leading to an arrest or conviction may be eligible for a financial reward.
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