Minneapolis firm shooting

The shooting took place at Accent Signage Systems, a sign-making business located in the Bryn Mawr neighborhood of Minneapolis, which is bisected[2] by Interstate 394. Andrew John Engeldinger, an employee of the firm, was called over to the office of operations director John Souter. Before going to the executive offices, Engeldinger first went to his car, apparently to retrieve a Glock 19 9mm handgun. When he was informed by Souter that he was losing his job, Engeldinger responded with "Oh, really?" and took out the handgun from his holster.[3][4] A struggle over the handgun ensued between Engeldinger, Souter, and top manager Rami Cooks; gunshots severely wounded Souter and fatally wounded Cooks. Engeldinger then left Souter's office, shooting and killing company founder Reuven Rahamim, who was stepping out of his office, which was next to Souter's. He then left the executive offices and entered a sign-display area, killing Jacob Beneke, an employee from Maple Grove. Engeldinger then moved on to the loading dock area, where he shot and killed a second employee, Ronald Edberg of Brooklyn Center. He also killed Keith Basinski, a UPS driver who was on a delivery, as he was seated in his truck. Engeldinger then entered the production floor and continued firing, fatally wounding production manager Eric Rivers and grazing another employee.[4]

The first 911 phone calls made from the business were at 4:35 p.m., when someone called in saying gunshots were being fired. The first officers that arrived on scene managed to escort some people out of the building during the assault. Engeldinger killed four people at the scene. Another victim died the next day. Three others were treated at Hennepin County Medical Center, two of them for critical injuries; one of these victims died on October 10. Engeldinger died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound in a warehouse in the workplace's basement.[1][5][6][7][8]

Andrew John Engeldinger (c. 1976 – September 27, 2012), a 36-year-old resident of Minneapolis for twelve years, was raised in Richfield, Minnesota and graduated from the Academy of Holy Angels.[7] He was formerly employed by Accent Signage Systems, but recently fired from the business.[1][10] According to neighbors, Engeldinger was a loner who never engaged in conversation with anyone, while a former coworker described him as not eating lunch or taking breaks with other employees. Engeldinger's parents and other family stated that he had some sort of mental illness and resisted treatment, eventually becoming estranged.[7] Authorities said there were clear indications he may have targeted certain people. A search of his home uncovered packaging for 10,000 rounds, indicating that he was heavily armed and had practiced shooting quite a bit.

Governor Mark Dayton described the shooting as "senseless," and said that "there is no place for it anywhere in Minnesota."[6] Minneapolis Mayor R. T. Rybak visited Accent Signage along with U.S. Representative Keith Ellison not long before the shooting. Rybak stated that, "we are deeply sorry about what has happened here," and adding that it was "a horrible tragedy."[1]