Travelers waiting to board a flight Wednesday afternoon from the Twin Cities to Hartford, Conn., were told of one special passenger: Minneapolis police officer Jamal Mitchell.
Delta Flight 2910 left the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport shortly before 2 p.m. with the body of Mitchell, who was killed while responding to a shooting on May 30 in south Minneapolis, said officials with MSP and the New Haven (Conn.) Police Department.
The flight landed about 5:20 p.m. EDT at Hartford's Bradley International Airport, according to the Delta Air Lines website.
Officer Mitchell was boarded onto the plane with Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara, MPD officers, the MPD Honor Guard, and Mitchell's family in attendance during a small ceremony, said Police Sgt. Garrett Parten.
Upon arrival in Connecticut, Parten added, "Mitchell was received in another ceremony with assistance from Connecticut State Police and New Haven PD, who accompanied him in a small procession to the funeral home."
Mitchell's departure came one day after he was eulogized and remembered during a memorial service at Maple Grove High School before thousands in person and many more viewing remotely.
An airport official said passengers at the gate saw the gathering of police vehicles near their aircraft and were curious about what as going on. Delta personnel at the gate soon announced that Mitchell's remains were on the flight for return to his native Connecticut and burial in his former home city of New Haven.
Funeral services for Mitchell are scheduled for Monday at the Floyd Little Athletic Center at Hillhouse High School, said officer Christian Bruckhart, that city's police spokesman. Viewing hours are planned for 9 to 11 a.m., with the service to immediately follow, the spokesman said. Burial will be at Evergreen Cemetery, police said.
Along with Mitchell, three other people were killed in back-to-back shootings in a two-block stretch of S. Blaisdell Avenue. Among the dead is Mustafa Ahmed Mohamed, 35, of Eden Prairie, who state investigators say shot Mitchell at close range in the 2100 block of Blaisdell after the officer asked him whether he needed help.
Initial word from police pointed to Mohamed as the gunman who killed two people in an apartment moments before he was shot by two police officers.
Also, the driver who was shot while passing by the scene of the gunfire was released from the hospital Monday. Alexander G. Hage, 38, was shot and critically wounded.
David Hage, a retired Minneapolis Star Tribune news reporter and editor, said his son "is recovering well" from his wounds.
Alexander Hage, who lives in south Minneapolis, "just happened to be there" on his way home when the shooting erupted, his father said last week.
