Teen Arrested in Fatal Shooting of 11-Year-Old Amir Atkins at Minneapolis Park
Updated: July 23, 2025 at 1:40 PM.
APPLE VALLEY, MINNESOTA—A month after a tragic daytime shooting that claimed the life of an 11-year-old boy, Minneapolis Police announced this morning the arrest of a 16-year-old male in connection with the murder of Amir Lamar Atkins.
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara confirmed the arrest on Wednesday morning, July 23, 2025, stating that the teenager was taken into custody without incident in the 14600 block of Denmark Court, Apple Valley, Minnesota, at approximately 9:01 a.m. on Tuesday, July 22. He was booked into the Hennepin County Juvenile Detention Center.
Rough location of arrest in Apple Valley, Minnesota.
The shooting took place on June 23, 2025, just after 2:00 p.m., at Folwell Park, located on Dowling Avenue North. Officers from the Fourth Precinct responded to multiple reports of gunfire. Preliminary reports suggest that a vehicle drove through the park while two other vehicles moved through an adjacent parking lot around the time shots were fired.
Shortly after the incident, a resident near the intersection of Morgan and Dowling Avenues North heard cries for help from outside his home. He discovered Amir and two other males suffering from gunshot wounds. The resident immediately placed Amir and one of the wounded individuals into his vehicle and began driving toward the hospital. On the way, he flagged down an officer near Penn and Dowling Avenues. The officer performed lifesaving efforts, but despite assistance from police, fire, and EMS personnel, Amir was pronounced dead at the scene.
Chief O’Hara called the killing of the 11-year-old “absolutely devastating” and emphasized the importance of public cooperation in solving the case. “I cannot emphasize enough how terrible it is to have an 11-year-old boy shot and killed in the middle of the day,” O’Hara said following the shooting. “We need anyone with information to come forward so we can bring some sense of justice to this child’s family.”
On Wednesday, Chief O’Hara credited investigators with the breakthrough in the case.
“I am incredibly grateful to the hard work of the investigators who worked to complete a thorough investigation of this heinous crime,” he said. “I am hopeful that this arrest brings a sense of justice for Amir and his family.”
Minneapolis Police Search Warrant Tuesday Morning in Apple Valley
The Minneapolis Police have confirmed to us that the search warrant executed just before 8:00 a.m. on Tuesday, July 23, 2025, in Apple Valley, Minnesota, was not related to Amir Lamar Atkins’ case. The suspect that Minneapolis Police were seeking in that warrant was tied to a separate fatal shooting that occurred Sunday, June 20, 2025, in Minneapolis. You can find our story on that incident here: Police Execute Search Warrant in Apple Valley in Connection with a Fatal Shooting in Minneapolis.
Written by: Markie Kelly & Will Wight
