ST. PAUL, Minn. — A person of interest is in custody after three adults were found shot to death inside an apartment complex leasing office in St. Paul’s Highland Park neighborhood on Monday afternoon.
St. Paul police said officers were called to the 1500 block of St. Paul Avenue just after 4 p.m. for a report of shots fired near the Davern Park Apartments. When they arrived, they discovered three people dead inside the leasing office.
Scene evacuated, search underway
Officers immediately evacuated residents from the building as investigators moved in to secure the area and begin collecting evidence. St. Paul Police Chief Axel Henry addressed reporters Monday night, calling the shooting a devastating blow to the community.
“This is an unbelievable big tragedy for our city, and it will not be accepted,” Henry said. He added a direct message for whoever was responsible, urging them to come forward and warning that police would track them down.
Investigators said they had already carried out one search warrant at a separate location tied to the case, though it did not turn up any evidence. Officers spent Monday night combing the leasing office and surrounding area for clues about what triggered the violence.
Suspect known to police, arrest confirmed
Just before 9:45 p.m., police announced on social media that a person of interest had been taken into custody in connection with the shooting. Henry noted that the individual is known to law enforcement, though authorities have not released the suspect’s identity or detailed any possible relationship between the suspect and the three victims.
The names of the victims have not yet been made public. The Ramsey County Medical Examiner’s Office will conduct autopsies to formally identify them and determine the exact causes of death.
Police confirmed the case represents the ninth, tenth, and eleventh homicides recorded in St. Paul so far in 2026, a grim marker for a city already grappling with a difficult stretch of violence this summer. The shooting comes just days after two separate mass shootings rattled nearby Minneapolis within a 20-hour span, leaving one person dead and more than a dozen others injured.
No further details have been released about a motive or how the three victims and the suspect may have known each other. The investigation remains active, and police are asking anyone with information to come forward.
Anyone with details about the shooting is urged to contact the St. Paul Police Department Homicide Unit at 651-266-5650.
