Teen arrested in St. Paul homicide that prompted Minneapolis search warrants in which police shot Amir Locke

Mara H. Gottfried, Pioneer Press, St. Paul, Minn.
·2 min read

Feb. 8—A teen is under arrest in a St. Paul homicide — the case that prompted police to execute search warrants last week, during which a Minneapolis officer fatally shot Amir Locke.

Police said Tuesday they took a 17-year-old into custody in connection to the Jan. 10 fatal shooting of Otis R. Elder, 38. Elder was found lying in the street in the 500 block of North Prior Avenue, between University Avenue and Interstate 94, in St. Paul.

Locke, 22, wasn't named in the search warrants, Interim Minneapolis Police Chief Amelia Huffman said last week.

On Monday, members of the Southwest Metro Task Force, Ramsey County Violent Crime Enforcement Team and St. Paul police Special Investigations Unit arrested the 17-year-old at about 3:45 p.m. in Winona, according to police.

He was booked on suspicion of second-degree murder into the Ramsey County Juvenile Detention Center and charges are expected Tuesday from the Ramsey County Attorney's Office.

St. Paul police sought a "knock and announce" warrant for an apartment in Minneapolis during the homicide investigation, but Minneapolis police said they would not carry out the warrant unless it was "no knock," law enforcement sources said Friday.

Minneapolis police said Locke pointed a loaded gun "in the direction of officers" when they used a key to enter a downtown Minneapolis apartment last Wednesday. Locke's parents said Friday that the Minneapolis SWAT team had woken him; they said he was law-abiding, with no criminal record, and had a permit to carry a gun.

The search warrants in the case will likely be unsealed after charges are filed, according to police.

Relatives of Elder have said they don't know why he was killed in St. Paul.

"I'm just feeling a little better this morning," Elder's mother, Shandra McKinley, said of the arrest.

Elder was the father of two sons, ages 1 and 14. "He was a dynamic dad," McKinley said. "The children changed him a lot. ... I was so proud of him."