‘Somali Gang’ Sends Thousands Fleeing High School Homecoming Game

A packed high school homecoming football game in suburban Minneapolis descended into chaos Friday night when gunfire erupted outside the stadium, wounding two teenagers and sending thousands of spectators scrambling for safety.

The shooting happened shortly before 9 p.m. Oct. 2 outside Eden Prairie High School, where Eden Prairie was playing rival Minnetonka in its homecoming game.

Eden Prairie police later said investigators believe the shooting was gang-related.

The violence unfolded after officers had already responded to a large altercation on the west side of Aerie Stadium. Police broke up the fight and removed several people from the area before shots were fired a short time later in the school parking lot.

Two males from St. Paul, ages 17 and 18, were struck. Police said neither victim attends Eden Prairie High School or Minnetonka High School.

Both suffered injuries that authorities described as non-life-threatening. The 18-year-old was released from the hospital Saturday, while the 17-year-old remained hospitalized.

FOX 9, citing a law-enforcement source, reported that the violence involved Somali gangs. Eden Prairie police have publicly confirmed the gang-related nature of the shooting but have not identified a particular gang or released detailed suspect information.

No arrests had been announced as of Sunday.

Police were also searching for at least one vehicle believed to have been used to flee the scene, although Police Chief Matt Sackett said investigators did not yet have a confirmed make or model to release.

Inside the stadium, the first indication for many spectators that something was seriously wrong came over the public-address system.

Fans were suddenly told to evacuate through the south end of the stadium.

“Everybody was just running in one direction,” 11-year-old spectator Addison Stetcher told KARE 11 after the frightening evacuation.

She said some people began climbing fences as the crowd rushed out.

Play-by-play announcer Wally Langfellow was calling the game from the press box when the evacuation order was announced.

Langfellow, who has spent more than three decades covering high school football, told FOX 9 he had never witnessed anything comparable.

What had been a routine football broadcast suddenly became a breaking-news situation as spectators poured out of the stadium and police flooded the area.

Authorities secured the school grounds while Eden Prairie police, firefighters and Hennepin County emergency personnel responded. Parents were directed to a reunification location at nearby Round Lake Park.

The parking lot remained part of the active crime scene for hours, preventing many spectators who had driven to the game from retrieving their vehicles until Saturday morning.

The shooting also brought Eden Prairie High School’s homecoming celebrations to an abrupt halt.

Principal Dr. Jaysen Anderson announced that Saturday night’s homecoming dance would be canceled because of the trauma students, staff and families had experienced less than 24 hours earlier.

School officials said they believed they could have provided adequate security for the dance but determined that going forward with the celebration so soon after the shooting would be inappropriate.

Classes were expected to resume Monday, with school officials preparing additional support for students and staff affected by the incident.

The football game itself was stopped following the shooting. FOX 9 reported Saturday that officials planned to complete the game at a later time.

Police have stressed that the two people wounded were not students at either school and that investigators believe the shooting was targeted rather than a random attack on spectators.

The investigation remains active as detectives work to identify those responsible and determine exactly what led from the earlier confrontation to gunfire outside the stadium.