UPDATE: Authorities say the clash with an armed suspect in St. Michael’s ended Wednesday night after approximately 44 hours.
According to the Wright County Sheriff’s Office, law enforcement officers broke into the home of 39-year-old Brandon Gardas around 8:30 p.m. An “armed clash” ensued and Gardas was shot dead.
Gardas was loaded by helicopter and transported by air to a nearby hospital. The sheriff’s office did not have any information about his condition.
Authorities say no police officers were injured in the operation.
The area of the house on block 500 on Central Avenue is blocked as investigators gather evidence. Residents are urged to stay away from the scene.
Law enforcement officers are at the scene of the clash in St. Michael. (KSTP-TV)
Additional information on the violent incident will be released by the Minnesota Criminal Bureau.
An earlier version of this report is provided below.
KSTP has team coverage today for the St. Michael’s Confrontation, which began early Tuesday around 12:30 p.m. Click on the video player above to watch the latest reports.
The dispute continues on Wednesday night in St. Michael.
In a 16-hour update, Wright County Sheriff Sean Deringer said Gardas remained hostile and was still firing on law enforcement. Fortunately, no casualties were reported.
Some nearby homes are still being evacuated as opposition continues. Officers were called for the first time in Block 500 on Central Avenue shortly after 12:30 a.m. Tuesday.
“As long as he communicates with us, however sporadically, we will continue to be here as long as we can to try to find a peaceful solution to this situation,” Deringer said Wednesday afternoon.
Wright County Attorney Brian Lutz told 5 EWITNESS NEWS on Wednesday:
“I hope the current situation in St. Michael will end peacefully. Gardas has no right to own a weapon, and he is aware of that. His continued disregard for the law is embarrassing. This leads to dangerous situations such as this and his complete lack of attention to law enforcement. This is frustrating and threatens his safety, his family and all the police officers who do their job, all because he will not obey the law and will not surrender on his orders. “
Wright County Attorney Brian Lutz
An earlier version of this report is provided below.
UPDATE: Authorities have told residents living near an active scene in St. Michael’s to evacuate because of what they say is the “volatile nature” of the incident, adding that shots were fired at law enforcement.
According to the Wright County Sheriff’s Office, lawmakers were called to Block 500 on Central Avenue West in St. Michael’s City for a gun complaint report Tuesday.
The person who reported the incident said that a man and a woman were arguing and the man was carrying a rifle.
The man, identified by authorities as 39-year-old Brandon Gardas of St. Michael’s, is said to have active arrest warrants. Gardas has been convicted of a crime and has been ordered on arrest on various charges, including assault and possession of a firearm.
Deputies have been trying to detain Gardas since Tuesday and are still at the scene on Wednesday morning.
Authorities say they fired several shots at them and are asking community members to stay away from the area.
Drivers on County Road 35 and other streets will also be diverted for public safety.
The sheriff of Henpen County is assisting the sheriff of Wright County in the clash that began yesterday – MPs say a man shot at them – in St. Michael. @kstp pic.twitter.com/PuOtcyxocw
– Eric Shalu (@EricChalouxKSTP) June 22, 2022
5 INVESTIGATES court documents found that police officers were previously at Gardas’ home.
A criminal complaint states that the deputies responded at the Gardas home along Central Avenue West shortly after 1 am on August 11, 2020, on a signal for a home attack. Deputies reportedly found a woman with bruises at the home who said she had been pressed and her phone confiscated. The woman said Gardas was not at home when lawmakers arrived and said she did not know where he was.
According to the complaint, the deputy in charge had previous contact at the home and said the family had an “arsenal of firearms”. After the house was cleared, lawmakers found a long corridor leading to the back room, described as a “doomed day” room in court records. Hundreds of cartridges, soft bulletproof vests and door-piercing equipment were found in the room, the complaint said. The woman said she tried to unlock a weapon safe but failed, saying Gardas “must have changed the code”.
The complaint alleges that Gardas was convicted in 2004 of controlled possession of third-degree substances, making it inadmissible to possess firearms or ammunition.
More than a year later, another complaint was filed against Gardas for possession of firearms and ammunition as a criminal, as well as fleeing from police.
Deputies who knew Gardas had an unfulfilled warrant for a serious crime, saw him on October 11, 2021 on the front step of the Gardas home along Central Avenue West.
The complaint states that after approaching about 10 feet from Gardas, lawmakers told him he had been arrested. Gardas then ran to the front door and tried to lock the door as he entered. However, the complaint states that the deputies kicked the doorknob and went inside and chased Gardas down the corridor while asking for help.
According to the complaint, Gardas’ wife communicated with him because he was locked in the bedroom and assisted in the negotiations before finally unlocking the door.
Deputies say they found Gardas sitting on the floor behind the bed, adding that he raised both hands to show he had no weapons, but when a deputy approached him, Gardas allegedly moved his hands out of sight to the ground, makes a deputy take out his firearm. Gardas was then forced to lie on the bed and handcuffed. Deputies found a holster for a pistol near his right side, as well as a loaded homemade 9 mm Glock-style pistol with an extended magazine under the bed.
Deputies say nearly two dozen rounds of hollow 9mm ammunition have been found, including the cartridge and cartridges in the magazine.
The complaint also states that the pistol does not have a serial number, with MPs saying that the lower half has a handle and trigger that appear to be a pre-made frame of the pistol, while the slider and rail appear to be Glock but no serial number. Documents say that after firing a dry gun at the sheriff’s office, the gun fired like a regular Glock.
This spring, the school announced that one of the minors “had not been present for a long time.” In response, the sheriff’s office told school staff not to go to the family residence without law enforcement because “the whole family is anti-government” and “it is very likely that the dangerous situation at the residence will escalate rapidly.”
On Wednesday, online records showed that Gardas’ wife, Chelsea Gardas, 37, was in custody and was detained on charges of aiding and abetting an offender to avoid arrest.
Updates will be provided when more information becomes available. Be sure to refresh your page to make sure you see the latest report.
An earlier version of this report can be found below.
INITIAL REPORT: 5 EWITNESS NEWS follows an apparent opposition in St. Michael’s, where authorities are stationed at at least 9:30 a.m. Tuesday night.
Authorities have set up a command center on Caddy Avenue. There are many agencies on site.
A photographer for 5 EWITNESS NEWS said he heard what was believed to be a shot while observing the situation at night.
With little information available so far, some neighbors have expressed concern.
“You think you’re protected here, you’re a little safe, but then you realize that nowhere is it immune to what’s happening,” said St. Michael’s resident Thomas Kaman.
Check back for updates as 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS work to learn more from Wright County staff.
- For related stories: Confrontation with Wright St. Michael County Shots
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