Police investigating death in St. Paul's North End neighborhood

St. Paul police responding to a robbery call in the city's North End neighborhood about 4 a.m. Thursday found a man dead.

Authorities have not identified the victim pending an autopsy by the Ramsey County medical examiner's office, but a police report named him as Jason L. Mikulak. His cause of death also remains under investigation.

Friends and family members of Mikulak could not be reached for comment.

Police spokesman Sgt. Mike Ernster said authorities are not yet saying how the man died or whether he was also the victim of the reported robbery.

Neighbors reported hearing five to six gunshots, and they said police and forensic scientists scoured the scene for evidence until about 9 a.m.

"It sounded like fireworks," said Alyce Niquette, who lives nearby. She said she wasn't initially alarmed because neighborhood kids occasionally light fireworks. But then several squad cars pulled into the street and the block was taped off.

"This was very unusual," said one neighbor who has lived on the block for 40 years and didn't want to be identified. "You don't usually see shootings."

It's unclear whether the victim was randomly targeted or whether he knew his assailant; any possible connection between the two remains under investigation.

Neighbors said that in recent months, they've noticed increased car and foot traffic near where the shooting occurred. A suspect was seen fleeing northwest from the area. Police described the suspect as a black male with a "medium complexion," mid-20s, thin build, wearing dark-colored clothing and having a high-pitched voice.

Police do not believe the death is related to Tuesday night's fatal shooting of Kin Reynolds, who was found dead near the intersection of Grotto Street and W. Edmund Avenue in the Frogtown neighborhood.