Two of Five Officers Shot While Serving Warrant in Benton County Released From Hospital

(KNSI) – Two of five police officers shot Thursday morning are out of the hospital.

Benton County Sheriff Troy Heck says about 7:00, the Sherburne County Drug Task Force was conducting a knock and announce search warrant at a home in Glendorado Township in a rural part of the county when shots rang out. “They announced their arrival multiple times before entering the home. At one point, the officers came under fire. Multiple officers returned fire, and retreated.”

Three deputies from Sherburne County, one investigator from the Elk River Police Department and one from the Princeton Police Department were all injured. Two of the deputies were shot in the vest. They were treated and released at CentraCare St. Cloud Hospital. The other three sustained gunshot wounds and were rushed to North Memorial Medical Center, where they remain, but all are expected to survive.

Because they are all working in an undercover capacity, no names will be released.

The suspected shooter, 64-year-old Karl Thomas Holmberg, was also hurt. He was taken into custody at 10:47 a.m. and brought to North Memorial for treatment. The cause and severity of his injuries weren’t given. Heck says Holmberg is known to them and has several prior felonies.

A woman in the house was not hurt but was taken to an area hospital, where she underwent observation and was released.

Heck says he’s grateful a horrible situation didn’t escalate further and thanked all those who came to their aid. “This has been a difficult day for us in Benton County. We are grateful that the incident did not result in loss of life or further injury. We’re also grateful for the bravery and professionalism of all those law enforcement professionals that were involved in this incident.”

When asked what people can do for the wounded officers, Heck said to keep them in their prayers. “I think right now, I would ask that you keep all of them and their families and all of our agencies in your thoughts and prayers.”

The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension is conducting the investigation.

Very few other details were released at the Thursday afternoon press conference, including the nature of the warrant or what kind of weapon Holmberg had. They’re going through body and dashboard camera video and will release more details in the coming days.

KNSI’s Jennifer Lewerenz and Grant Dossetto contributed to this story.

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