Who is Carlton Johnson II, the suspect in the Minneapolis mass shooting?

Tim Harlow, The Minnesota Star Tribune on Sep 3, 2026

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MINNEAPOLIS — The man accused of carrying out a mass shooting at a downtown Minneapolis apartment building Wednesday afternoon was about to be evicted from his 9th floor unit and had a long criminal record.

Those familiar with the investigation into the Wednesday shooting at Shoreline Plaza that left 3 people dead and several others injured identified the gunman as Carlton Johnson II, 35.

Johnson was declared dead at the scene on E. Grant Street, near Loring Park and the Minneapolis Convention Center. It is unknown how he died, according to a police update late Wednesday.

Apartment management in June had served Johnson an eviction notice, claiming he had breached his lease on six occasions between January and June 13. Among the accusations are that Johnson assaulted another resident, openly displayed a firearm and made statements that he “would kill someone.”

Court records show management reached an agreement with Johnson allowing him to stay. But records also show Johnson was due back in Hennepin County Court on Sept. 11 in connection with the eviction case.

Other records show a laundry list of other charges and convictions for traffic infractions. Records also show he was charged with two assaults and two misdemeanor drug cases.

One conviction dates to 2012 when he pled guilty to violating a contact order in a domestic abuse case. In 2018, Johnson was charged with domestic assault after his sister told police that he threw her around her apartment one night while he was drunk, causing her to collide with furniture.

Johnson’s sister also said he kicked the door open when she tried to boot him out of the apartment. Johnson also hinted that he had a gun in his car, telling her he was “not afraid to shoot people in the face,” according to the charging document.

The domestic assault charge was dropped after Johnson agreed to plead guilty to misdemeanor property damage. He was sentenced to 90 days in jail, but 86 days of the sentence were stayed under the terms of his probation agreement.

Others who knew Johnson said he was outgoing and often hung out with neighbors at Shoreline. Derrick Thompson, who had just moved out of Shoreline Plaza, said Johnson obtained a permit to carry, had a child custody dispute and his car was recently repossessed.

“He was fighting people every day, every damn day,” Thompson added. “He lost everything.”