For the second straight night, gunfire erupted outside of a bar and restaurant in Crystal.
Three people were wounded Monday night in a parking lot adjacent to Big Louie's Bar and Grill on the 5200 block of West Broadway, nearly 24 hours after a 27-year-old man was shot to death in the same area. Crystal police say the incidents appear to be related to one another.
"Our preliminary investigation clearly suggests that these shootings were not random. People did not just show up and indiscriminately start shooting at people in a parking lot," said Crystal Deputy Police Chief Brian Hubbard. "These individuals knew each other or knew of each other. We don't have people who are just randomly choosing folks or establishments."
Sunday morning's shooting happened after the restaurant closed, but Monday night's shooting happened on what Hubbard says was a busy night for the establishment with people inside and others outside on the patio area.
In Monday night's shooting, police say two men in their 20's were found shot in the parking lot aroudn 10:30 p.m. Not long after that, a 35-year-old man arrived at a hospital with gunshot wounds, and police say that man was hurt in the same incident. All three suffered non-life-threatening gunshot wounds.
While no arrests have been made, Hubbard says there is no danger to the public.
"Crystal remains a very safe city," he said. "I live in this community and I don't have any reason to tell my family members that they shouldn't continue on about their business."
Big Louie's Bar and Grill released a statement on Facebook saying they would close their doors until at least July 6.
The incident comes after a rash of gun violence in Minneapolis. On Monday, a nine people were hit by gunfire in three separate shooting incidents along with a fatal stabbing.
No arrests have been made in those incidents.