Eagan Officers On Administrative Leave Following Shooting
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – Several questions remain following a fatal officer-involved shooting in Eagan Sunday.
Police shot and killed 37-year-old Justin Lee Kulhanek-Derks, of Eagan, who they said was firing a gun outside an apartment complex Sunday afternoon.
According to police, around noon officers received a 911 call that a man had fired multiple shots into the air and some towards the Forest Ridge apartment building, located on Ironwood Lane.
Eagan police said once they arrived, there was an exchange of gunfire.
It's unclear who fired gunshots first or how many shots were fired.
Kulhanek-Derks died at the scene. No officers were injured.
Laura Scott and her daughter Lexi live in the apartment complex where the shots were fired. They said they heard about 10 gun shots.
Lexi said Kulhanek-Derks is her friend's dad and lived in the apartment complex. She said Kulhanek-Derk's daughter, Lexi's friend, wasn't home at the time of the shooting, but that she came straight to their home when she learned what happened.
"He was my best friend's dad. He was like another dad to me," Lexi said.
"He was a happy go lucky guy, very kind-hearted. He was as happy as can be," Laura said.
Those neighbors said Kulhanek-Derks was recently heartbroken over a relationship that ended.
Three Eagan police officers are now on administrative leave, which is standard procedure after a police shooting.
The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension has stepped in to investigate the incident.
This is a rare occurrence for Eagan; the last officer-involved shooting happened in 1992.