Multiple shooters and at least one fatality at East Side St. Paul park

Gunfire erupted in a park on St. Paul's East Side Sunday night, leaving one male dead in a "chaotic scene" with as many as 300 people on hand, a police spokesman said.

At least one other person was injured, according to police scanner reports.

As of 11 p.m., however, police would not confirm how many victims and-or shooters were involved in the incident, which occurred about 7:20 p.m. in Indian Mounds Regional Park at Earl Street and Mounds Boulevard.

Police were following leads about vehicles seen leaving the scene after the shooting. Witness accounts were being taken, and a helicopter was put in the air over the area to assist the search for suspects. The park was cleared and crime scene secured.

Steve Linders, a police spokesman, said that witnesses were being identified, and efforts made to find others.

"We've got our work cut out for us," he said of the investigation.

Asked whether the violence was gang-related, Linders said: "It's unclear what the motives are at this time."

About an hour after the shooting, an off-duty Metro Transit bus was brought to the park and about four or five people were escorted onto it by officers.

One person was transferred to Regions Hospital, according to Police Clips, and about 15 people arrived at the hospital soon after.

A reporter arriving at Regions about 9:30 p.m. saw five police officers stationed at the door of the Emergency Center, where they checked IDs and questioned those who sought to enter. No crowd was gathered outside.

About two hours after the Mounds Park shooting, Police Clips reported that a man with a gunshot wound to his arm had run into a CVS pharmacy near Snelling and University avenues. The store later was reported to be providing police with a videotape of the scene, although the shooting was said to have occurred somewhere nearby outside the store.

Anthony Lonetree • 612-673-4109