Officers from three metro-area police forces flooded the University of MinnesotaâÄôs West Bank on Friday night, roping off busy sections of campus during a search for a man suspected in a double-slaying in Brooklyn Park.
The man, who was suspected in a shooting at a grocery store in the northwestern suburb, killed himself on the Mississippi River Flats as police closed in around 9:45 p.m., according to reports.
The shooting in the break room at the Brooklyn Park Festival Foods grocery store, which left two dead, occurred around 8:30 p.m. Friday.
Police then tracked the man to the University area, where their search intensified.
Squad cars and groups of officers blocked the pedestrian level of the Washington Avenue Bridge, and police cordoned off numerous buildings around campus around the time of the incident.
A police helicopter outfitted with a spotlight whirled overhead as officers armed with rifles searched the west bank of the river, witnesses said.
University of Minnesota senior Anne Stanton, who was walking across the Washington Avenue Bridge with a friend Friday night, said she and her friend âÄúheard what we assumed were two muffled shots.âÄù
University students watching the commotion from the river bluffs said they later saw a body sprawled on the sidewalk on West River Parkway near the bridge.
Police said they were not searching for any other suspects in the original shooting.
âÄîJill Jensen and the Associated Press contributed to this report.