Authorities are looking for a hit-and-run suspect following what they initially thought to be a single-vehicle wreck in northern Minnesota.
According to State Patrol, the crash occurred on Hwy. 72 east of Upper Red Lake on Monday, May 31 at 6:50 a.m. Woodbury resident Shaun A. O’malley, 58, was killed in the wreck when his SUV went into the ditch.
O’malley’s body was outside the wreckage when first responders arrived, according to emergency dispatch audio.
Beltrami Sherriff’s Office and the State Patrol now believe that this was not a single-vehicle wreck, but a second vehicle was involved -- and fled the scene.
In a press release, county emergency services director Christopher Muller said, "law enforcement believes there are members of the public that may have witnessed suspicious activity in the area of the crash as well as the city of Kelliher. Law enforcement believes the vehicle involved fled the scene traveling southbound [on Hwy. 72]."
"As the Minnesota State Patrol and law enforcement continued to investigate the crash, more evidence and information indicated there was more than one vehicle involved," Patrol Sgt. Jesse Grabow said Wednesday.
The Beltrami Sheriff’s office is looking for assistance from the public in locating the second vehicle and its driver. A photo was released showing the man as he put gas in his car at a Cenex gas station located 40 miles north in Baudette.
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Any information can be forwarded to the Beltrami County Sheriff’s Office at 218-333-9111 or the Minnesota State Patrol at 218-683-8410.
