The state agency investigating the fatal shooting of a suspect by St. Louis County sheriff's deputies say its agents are facing several challenges as they pursue details about the encounter over the weekend on the Iron Range.
The state Bureau of Criminal Apprehension said Tuesday that the Sheriff's Office does not equip its deputies with body cameras, there is no squad dashcam video of the shooting and the deputies declined at the outset to be interviewed by BCA agents. Meanwhile, there are no surviving witnesses to the encounter other than the deputies themselves.
Estavon Dominic Elioff, 19, of Virginia, Minn., was suspected of shoplifting early Saturday afternoon at L&M Fleet Supply in nearby Mountain Iron shortly before deputies chased him into the woods, tased him and shot him. The deputies said they also believed Elioff had a role in a drive-by shooting the day before in Virginia, Minn.
Authorities have yet to say what prompted the deputies to shoot Elioff several times. The BCA did say Tuesday that a knife was recovered at the scene but did not elaborate on the weapon's significance.
Also Tuesday, the agency identified the deputies who fired at Elioff as Ryan Smith, who has been with the Sheriff's Office for 11 years, and Matt Tomsich, an 11-year veteran of the Sheriff's Office. Both are on standard administrative leave.
In lieu of agreeing to speak with BCA agents in the immediate aftermath of the shooting, attorneys for the deputies provided "unsolicited written reports" to investigators, a statement released by the agency read.
However, their attorneys told the Star Tribune on Wednesday that their clients chose to submit reports in writing first and said they now welcome being questioned in person by investigators.
"The BCA agent didn't want a written report and only wanted an oral interview," said attorney Aaron Morrison, who is representing Tomsich.