The two suspects involved in Tuesday’s shooting outside the South Education Center in Richfield were also students, police said during a Wednesday press conference.
“The shooting was not random. The incident involved five South Education students,” said Richfield Police Chief Jay Henthorne, referring to the three victims and two suspects.
“The five students did know each other. An altercation possibly related to a previous dispute took place” near the front entrance of the school, he added. A handgun was “produced” and two students were shot just after 12 p.m.
Several reports have identified the student who was killed as Jahmari Rice, the 15-year-old son of Cortez Rice, a Black Lives Matter activist who is currently in jail on charges of harassing the judge in the Kim Potter trial.
Activists who were gathered outside the school Tuesday also identified the deceased victim as Rice’s son.
Police did say the deceased victim was 15 but did not provide a name. A 17-year-old victim remains in critical condition and a 19-year-old suffered minor injuries. The 17-year-old and 15-year-old were rushed to the hospital after the shooting.
SWAT teams executed two search warrants shortly after 6 p.m. Tuesday at separate addresses in Minneapolis. Two suspects were arrested, a vehicle was seized and a handgun was recovered.
Five additional search warrants were served throughout the night, including at an address in Crystal where another handgun was recovered. Police are still working to determine which gun was used in the shooting.
The suspects were identified as 18-year-old Fernando Valdez-Alvarez and 19-year-old Alfredo Rosario Solis. They are being held at the Hennepin County Jail and charges are expected later this week.
