St. Paul Police Fatally Shoot Murder Suspect; BCA investigates

ST. PAUL, Minn. — St. Paul police officers fatally shot a man Saturday after receiving a tip about his whereabouts a man charged in the death of his pregnant ex-wife.

In a press conference late Saturday evening, Sgt. Mike Ernster said police were first alerted by an anonymous caller shortly after 1 p.m Mychel Stowers — who is charged with two counts of second-degree murder in connection with the death of Damara Stowers last month — was at a laundromat at West Seventh Street and Watson Avenue.

Ernster said officers came into the store but “did not approach directly” and were trying to determine if anyone was inside. After waiting for some time, they saw a man riding his bike to the laundromat. Another anonymous call came in again saying he was Stowers.

Police waited until the man left the laundromat around 1:45 p.m. when Ernster said “approximately six” uniformed officers in marked patrol cars “attempted to stop him and determine his identity” near Bay Street and Watson Avenue .

Ernster said the man was armed and several officers shot at him. He was later pronounced dead at Regions Hospital.

No officers were injured, Ernster said, and all were wearing active body cameras. You are on regular administrative leave.

The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension is leading the investigation, and Ernster said he could not answer several questions about the case, including whether the victim was Stowers and whether he pointed a gun at officers before they opened fire.

Court documents show Stowers had just been paroled after being convicted of another murder in 2008.

One of the neighbors WCCO spoke to, Cameron Kral, said his brother witnessed a man on a bicycle being shot.

“They just heard 'pop, pop, pop,' and they turned around and saw the man on the bike fall off the bike and the blood,” Kral said.

Neighbor Lawson Harder said the sound of gunfire was unusual in the “quiet, normal” West Seventh-Fort Road neighborhood. Kral said his family moved there to escape “a lot of the problems in East St. Paul.”

“It seemed peaceful, and now it’s kind of everywhere,” Kral said.

Ernster said the BCA will release more information about the case at a later date, including the victim's identity and police body camera footage.