Record reward offered to find shooters of 3 children in Minneapolis
A record reward of a combined $180,000 is being offered to help law enforcement arrest those responsible for the shootings of three children in Minneapolis this year.
The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension announced the reward Monday to correspond with the launch of a billboard campaign that features the three children who were shot and the reward information.
In May, 6-year-old Aniya Allen and 9-year-old Trinity Ottoson-Smith were fatally shot. Ladavionne Garrett Jr., 10, was shot in the head in April and remains in recovery, according to family members who spoke at the BCA's press conference Monday.
"He's got a long road to recovery. It's not going to be an easy road. He was shot in the head," a family member said.
Police have yet to make any arrests in connection to any of the shootings, thus the call for the public to help provide tips that lead to answers for the children and their families.
"These families deserve a sense of closure. They have not received that yet," said Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo.
A tip that leads to the arrest and conviction of a shooter could lead to a reward of up to $60,000 for each case. That's an increase from the $10,000 per case that Crime Stoppers and the Minneapolis Regional Chamber of Commerce announced earlier this summer.
Tips can be reportedly anonymously three ways:
- Online at http://crimestoppersmn.org
- Call the BCA at 877-996-6222
- Email the BCA at bca.tips@state.mn.us
Department of Public Safety Assistant Commissioner Booker Hodges delivered a message to the people who fired the shots: "I know the pain has got to be getting to you. That pain will eat at you. The only way you can relieve that pain is to do what you know is right, what we all know is right."
