– Fargo Police Officer dies in shooting Friday July 14

Fargo, ND, USA | KFGO Tasha Carvell Jul 17, 2023 | 11:27 AM

FARGO (KFGO) – Three days after a man opened fire on Police and Fire personnel who were responding to a car crash in south Fargo, killing one officer and critically wounding two others, Police Chief Dave Zibolski says there are still more questions than answers.

“This is a unusual circumstance. It’s a completely unprovoked attack on law enforcement and our firefighters and so, why? And to what end? Are there any other legs to this?” Zibolski said. “We don’t know those answers. That’s what the BCI and the FBI are working on and we have to give them the time to do that. There’s a lot of pieces to doing this type of analysis and investigation.”

Zibolski says there’s no indication of any continuing threat to the public. The shooter, 37-year-old Mohamad Barakat, was fatally shot by Fargo officer Zachary Robinson to end the attack.

“Zach, under fire, with just extreme courage and valor, responded to what he had been trained to do. His calmness in that situation is just incredible. And if he hadn’t acted and done everything exactly how he did it and as quickly as he could, we might not have those officers in the hospital still with us, because Zach’s ability to end that threat of death to others allowed those firefighters to be in a position to get back out and provide life saving care to our cops. Every second counts in a situation like this,” Zibolski said.

Robinson is a seven-year veteran of the force and was the training officer of 23-year-old Jake Wallin, who died in the shooting. Wallin had only been on the force for three months and previously served in Afghanistan as a member of the Minnesota National Guard.

“I was talking to Jake’s dad last night and he told me, ‘If I had told Jake he was gonna get shot the next day he still would have gone to work.’ That’s how committed he was. That’s how purposeful he was,” Zibolski said . . . .

More S t o r y at KFGO

The North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation is the lead agency investigating the shooting. State Attorney General Drew Wrigley has not provided any anticipated timeline as to how long the investigation might take to complete.

Previously Reported by Valley News Live:

FARGO, N.D. (Valley News Live) – Emergency crews rushed to an area of south Fargo Friday afternoon for reports of rapid gunfire.

Witnesses tell Valley News Live it happened after a traffic collision on 25th Street South near 9th Avenue South. Police have yet to release information about the events leading up to the shooting. Witnesses say they heard more than 40 shots, likely from an automatic weapon.

Three police officers were shot; one officer has died and two are in critical condition. Police say a total of 5 people were shot Friday afternoon, those are three officers, one person who was just nearby and the shooting suspect. Police have confirmed that shooting suspect has died. FPD plan on holding a press conference on Saturday, July 15th at 3:30pm.

On Friday evening, law enforcement were seen filing in and out of the hospital, with a group of officers gathered outside of the emergency room. As night fell, law enforcement activated their squad car lights and did a procession from the Sanford ER, down I-94 and through Fargo.

Police responded to the area of 25th Street and 9th Avenue South, which is near Big Top Bingo and is also near the area of Countryside Trailer Court. The perimeter stretched from Main Avenue to 13th Avenue South. Police have not said when roads in that area will re-open.

A second scene unfolded later Friday afternoon in the 2800 block of 23rd Avenue South. The U.S. Marshals Service, FBI, ATF and Fargo Police officers are on scene. Officials say they are gathering evidence and intelligence related to the shooting. People living in an apartment complex have been evacuated.

Fargo Police say there is no known threat to the public at this time. The department asks for your patience as it works to sort out the details of what happened.

Valley News Live will bring you updated information as soon as it becomes available.

Previously Reported by KVLY:

FARGO, N.D. (Valley News Live) – Valley News Live – Valley News Live is receiving reports of shots fired in south Fargo. KFGO Radio is reporting three police officers were shot, which matches what scanner traffic indicated. They also say two of the officers are in critical condition. Sanford Health says they will not be providing any condition report updates on those involved in today’s incident as those updates will be coming directly from The Fargo Police Department.

Fargo police have also released there is no known threat to the public at this time. FPD asks for your patience as it works on this incident.

Emergency calls started coming in around 3:00 p.m. Friday afternoon.

There is a large police presence in the area of 25th Street and 9th Avenue South, which is near Big Top Bingo.