Andrew Tekle Sundberg the 20-year-old who allegedly initiated multiple gunshots inside the Seward neighborhood apartment building on July 13 was killed by two Minneapolis police snipers after a failed negotiation attempt. However, after the shocking incident, Tekle’s parents came out to the media and claimed that the MPD has killed his son for being “black” while other “white” mass shooters are being “arrested safely.” They also added that the MPD didn’t let them interact with their son during the negotiation.
According to the reports, Sundberg has fired multiple gunshots inside the Seward apartment building on Wednesday night last week. The neighbor Arabella Yarbrough dialed 911 after multiple bullets went through the walls of her apartment. She was fearful of her two young sons getting shot and dialed the MPD in order to save her children. Police evacuated her children to safety from the apartment building and tried to negotiate with Sundberg for several hours. The MPD also got Sundberg’s parents on a call with Andrew which can be seen on Citizen App Livestream where his dad urged him to talk to the negotiators.
The parents of Andrew Tekle Sundberg are telling media that the MPD didn't allow any communication with their son.
However, video from a livestream shows Mark Sundberg speaking on the PA system to his son.
"Tekle, this is your dad again. I need you to talk to negotiators." pic.twitter.com/k6cldYzxd9
— Rebecca Brannon (@RebsBrannon) July 18, 2022
However, after a failed negotiation attempt the MPD snipers shot Andrew fatally on 4:30 a.m. Thursday morning. He was wounded and taken to Hennepin Healthcare where he died afterward.
The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) investigation unit later recovered a pistol with an extended magazine and several bullets from Sundberg’s apartment. The officers who shot Andrew fatally were members of the SWAT team and it is still unknown what prompted them to shoot him.
However, after Sundberg’s death, his parents came out to the media and claimed that the officers killed him for racial reasons. The Civil Rights advocate Ben Crump who is representing Sundberg’s family has claimed on his Twitter account following the incident that MPD officers denied Andrew Tekle’s dad to talk to him during the hours of stand-off.
The attorney said along with a video of Sundberg’s parents talking to the media, “Minneapolis Police Department officers gave their PROMISE to Tekle Sundberg’s parents that their son’s mental health crisis would NOT end in a shooting… Still, the officers denied Tekle’s dad’s pleas to talk to him during the hours-long standoff & ultimately fatally shot Tekle.”
Minneapolis Police Department officers gave their PROMISE to Tekle Sundberg's parents that their son's mental health crisis would NOT end in a shooting… Still, the officers denied Tekle's dad's pleas to talk to him during the hours-long standoff & ultimately fatally shot Tekle. pic.twitter.com/RdZMv1zOOb
— Ben Crump (@AttorneyCrump) July 16, 2022
Rebecca Brannon who is a photojournalist covering Minnesota politics said on his Twitter account regarding the incident that both attorney Crump and Sundberg’s parents are circulating a false narrative on the social networking sites in an attempt to give it a racial angle and spreading misinformation.
She said, “This narrative and the claims pushed by Crump and Sundberg’s parents in order to place blame on the MPD has circulated social media the last several days leaving many to falsely believe there was absolutely no opportunities given to Tekle’s parents to reach him.”
This narrative and the claims pushed by Crump and Sundberg's parents in order to place blame on the MPD has circulated social media the last several days leaving many to falsely believe there was absolutely no opportunities given to Tekle's parents to reach him. pic.twitter.com/crozXxMGzc
— Rebecca Brannon (@RebsBrannon) July 18, 2022
However, attorneys, Ben Crump and Jeff Storm have represented the family of George Floyd and won a record of $27 million in death settlement of Floyd against the Minneapolis city police.
Reportedly Sundberg’s death was the second encounter involving the MPD this year while the first shooting encounter was of Amir Locke in February. The Minneapolis Police Department has been under scrutiny for years following the murder of George Floyd in May 2020 which led to a nationwide “Back life matter” movement.
