Conflict · Shoreline Plaza shootingA Gun Permit and 6 Warnings, Then 2 Dead in MinneapolisAired September 5, 2026 at 10:49 PM UTCWritten September 5, 2026 at 10:50 PM UTCRead the write-upThis storyTranscript · LOADING0:00A man with a legal permit to carry killed two residents in his own apartment0:03building.0:04Investigated for a June gun display, being evicted over threats, under a 20230:08restraining order, none of it stopped the rampage.0:11How did every warning sign miss before two people died?0:14It started as a child custody exchange.0:16Around 4:30 that afternoon, 35-year-old Carlton Johnson met the mother of his child0:21outside Shoreline Plaza, a subsidized high-rise formerly known as Loring Towers.0:26He shot her in the leg.0:27The child was present and unharmed, aside from the trauma of watching it.0:31Johnson then walked inside and shot two building employees at close range.0:34One of them, the building manager, 56-year-old Jan Peterson, who was seriously0:38wounded.0:39He took the elevator to the ninth floor, where he lived, and gunned down two0:42residents in the hallway, 63-year-old Dale Spry, a marine veteran whose family0:46described post-service PTSD, and 61-year-old Muse Abdiafra.0:51The 911 call came at 4.36.0:53Police were inside in under three minutes, following the sound of gunfire upstairs0:58into a haze from a punctured fire extinguisher.1:00They exchanged fire twice with Johnson, and he died on that same floor.1:04A preliminary autopsy ruled his death homicide, multiple gunshot wounds from police1:08gunfire, not suicide.1:10In total, seven people were shot, two residents killed and five wounded, the child's1:15mother, the two building employees, and two police officers.1:18Two officers were shot, Joseph Makhnowski, who was hit twice in the abdomen and1:22required surgery, and Yahya Ahmed, who was shot in the leg and released from the1:25hospital.1:26A third officer, Ernest Boateng, was injured but not shot, cut by glass when he1:30broke a squad window to shut off a siren.1:33Two more officers were hurt in a crash en route and four were affected by haze from1:37the extinguisher.1:39Roughly 160 officers responded.1:41Less than five months before the rampage, the sheriff's office reissued Johnson his1:45permit to carry.1:46On June 25th, police responded to a report he displayed a firearm at the building.1:51They concluded he was a legal permit holder and the gun never left his waistband.1:55That case went to the county attorney's office in August.1:58Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty says an experienced attorney found2:01insufficient evidence to prove a charge beyond a reasonable doubt.2:04The same incident was flagged for an extreme risk protection order, but the review2:08found insufficient evidence to petition for one.2:11Neighbor statements in the eviction file were stronger than what police documented.2:14Johnson brandished the gun and said he would kill someone.2:17And a resident told police Johnson had said over the weekend he would shoot his ex2:21and two property managers.2:23Johnson was also being evicted.2:25His lease ran from March 2025.2:28The landlord, through attorney Laurel Pugh, alleged six lease breaches between2:32January 16th and June 13th, including an assault of a resident on March 23rd and the2:36June gun displays.2:38On June 16th, the landlord issued a 10-day termination notice effective June 29th2:43with a last chance condition that he keep any firearm concealed and follow carry2:46law.2:47After further alleged breaches on June 19th and 25, the eviction complaint was filed2:52June 29th.2:53Johnson answered on August 3rd, denying the threats and citing a Minnesota law that2:57bars landlords from restricting a lawful tenant's carry.3:00The hearing was continued from August 14th to September 11th, nine days after the3:04shooting.3:04Police had been called to the building hundreds of times over two years, and new3:08ownership had filed about 20 evictions in 2026.3:11What's confirmed?3:13Two residents killed, the suspect's death ruled homicide, and an eviction that was3:17pending trial, not completed.3:19What's not known whether the 2023 restraining order petitioner is the same woman3:23shot outside, whether the residents were specifically targeted, and whether Officer3:28Michnowski fired.3:29The BCA investigation is still reviewing that.3:32The next concrete date on the docket is September 11th at 8:30 a.m.3:36The calendar call in the eviction case, nine days after the shooting.3:40But the bigger open question is the BCA's investigation into the officer-involved3:44shooting, including whether Officer Michnowski fired.3:47Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty declined charges and a red flag order in the3:52June incident and has publicly questioned why the permit wasn't revoked.3:55BCA Superintendent Drew Evans leads the investigation into the officer fire.4:00Interim police chief Bill Peterson and Mayor Jacob Frey praised the response.4:04Frey said the tourniquet officers applied to the child's mother likely saved her4:08life.4:08The system saw the warnings.4:10A permit reissued in April, a handgun display investigated in June, six lease4:15breaches, a 2023 restraining order.4:17None produced a charge, a red flag order, or a revoked permit before two people4:21died.4:22The September 11th eviction trial may still proceed, but that's a docket item, not4:26prevention.4:27Whether the BCA findings and the county attorney's push change the policy is the4:31open question.Explore with HeyDexFollow via RSSThe shortThe short ↗