by Crime Watch MN
A Minneapolis Public Schools employee has been charged after a student found a bag containing two loaded guns inside Loring Elementary School on the city’s north side.
Charges say Derrick Lee Lind, 20, brought a backpack into the school on April 23, 2023, that contained a stolen gun and another gun with a “switch” that modifies a gun to fire automatically.
A student at the school found the bag on a table on the second floor of the school, and charges say Lind wasn’t near the bag when it was found. A teacher took possession of the bag and found the handguns inside, and police were subsequently called.
A witness at the school, identified in the complaint as a school emergency management staff member, later told an investigator that they spoke with Lind who claimed the bag and said it was his. Lind reportedly told the witness that he didn’t want to leave the bag in his vehicle because it doesn’t lock. The witness told Lind he could not have the guns back and needed to leave the school. Charges say Lind became upset and “trashed a room” before leaving the school. The witness told police that he cleared the loaded guns which each had a round in the chamber.
The investigator obtained surveillance video from the school which showed Lind exit his vehicle with a bag that matched the one found with the guns, and video also showed him walking around the school with the bag.
Lind has been charged with one felony count of possessing a dangerous weapon on school property, and gross misdemeanor counts of negligent storage of a firearm and carrying a pistol in a public place without a permit. The criminal complaint notes that Lind does not have a valid permit to carry a firearm.
A warrant was issued for Lind on the charges at the end of April, and he was taken into custody on Monday, May 15, booking records show.
Lind remains in custody at Hennepin County Jail on $35,000 bail in the case with his next court appearance scheduled for June 14.
Possession of a “switch,” or auto sear, is illegal under federal law. Information was not immediately available on whether Lind may face any federal charges in the case.
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Minnesota Crime Watch & Information publishes news, info and commentary about crime, public safety and livability issues in Minneapolis, the Twin Cities and Greater Minnesota.
Photo “Derrick Lee Lind” by Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office.
