Edina man charged with attempted murder after jamming a gun during suspected police ambush

REDWOOD FALLS, Minn. – A 27-year-old Edina man is charged with attempted murder after his rifle jammed during a suspected police ambush, the indictment says.

According to the criminal complaint, the man is charged with attempted first-degree murder, first-degree and second-degree assault and possession of metal bullets.

On the night of Aug. 28, Redwood County Dispatch received a report of a suicide victim at Ramsey Park in Redwood Falls, according to court documents. The caller did not provide any further information and hung up.

The same number then called the Redwood County non-emergency number. The complaint states that dispatch answered the call, but there was no response from the caller. The phone was located on a pedestrian bridge near the Redwood Falls Hydroelectric Plant.

Responding officers found a Mazda registered to the 27-year-old parked near a shelter in the park. Inside the vehicle, police found camping supplies, water, a Bible, a crucifix, Narcan and notebooks.

The officers then called for the man and said they were there to help him. After a brief search, officers spotted the man running toward the pedestrian bridge. As he ran, officers noticed he dropped a rifle case, according to the complaint.

Once on the bridge, the man climbed over the railing but was restrained by police to prevent him from falling or jumping.

The man is in custody at the Redwood County Jail.

According to the lawsuit, the rifle case contained a loaded AR-15 with multiple modifications and 10 fully loaded magazines containing approximately 300 rounds of ammunition. Some of the ammunition was armor-piercing, officials say.

Police examined the rifle and determined it was jammed.

On August 29, Redwood Falls police obtained a search warrant to search the man's phone. According to the complaint, they found several disturbing images, religious searches and notes.

The complaint states a telephone entry: “I am charged with involuntary assisted suicide or murder.”

Other posts have described how to shoot a 9mm handgun from long range and how to stand while shooting the weapon.

A woman told officers the man withdrew his savings from his bank account and gave her a check for $78,000, the complaint says. She believed the man had some kind of plan because of the stop and told officers he would never take his own life.