John Jefferson
Main: the crashed car (KARE). Eddie James Freeman (Hennepin County Jail).
Part of an interstate highway in Minnesota was shut down for hours over the weekend after a woman dumped her boyfriend while driving and he allegedly reacted by grabbing the wheel, crashing the car, opening fire on responding troopers, and even spitting in an officer’s face.
The case against 23-year-old Eddie James Freeman reportedly began on Saturday night, when his girlfriend broke up with him as she drove on I-94 and he sat in the passenger seat. A probable cause statement paints a picture of a chaotic scene after Freeman allegedly grabbed the wheel of the car and sent it off the road.
Minnesota State Police alleged that while they were heading to the crash site they learned that “shots had been fired.”
When Freeman was located, he allegedly “raised his arm and pointed it at the squad car, firing multiple shots towards Trooper A” and hitting the officer’s vehicle, gunfire that state authorities say was caught on video. The incident didn’t stop there.
“Additional officers responded to the location, including Officer B, a Minneapolis Police Officer. Officer B noted that as he arrived, the defendant raised his hand and pointed what appeared to be a gun in the officer’s direction,” documents said. “Officer B noted that he then heard what he believed to be a gunshot but was unclear if the defendant was firing at him.”
As more law enforcement swarmed the scene, Freeman allegedly dropped the gun and during his arrest spit in the face of a Minneapolis cop.
While all of this was happening, the reason why the car crashed in the first place became clearer, authorities said, citing the victim’s account.
“Officers located Victim D, who was the driver of the vehicle. Victim D reported that the defendant was her boyfriend and that as they were driving on I-94, she told the defendant the relationship was over,” documents said. “According to Victim D, the defendant grabbed the steering wheel, causing the vehicle to crash.”
The victim additionally said that the airbags in the car went off, preventing her from immediately escaping and seeing what was happening outside the windows. It was then that she “heard multiple gunshots from the area outside of her car,” she said.
Authorities alleged that there was a bullet hole in her door “near” where she was sitting in the driver’s seat.
Local NBC affiliate KARE reported that part of I-94 was shut down for “several hours” as a result of the ordeal, for which Freeman faces several assault charges that could lead to substantial prison time if he goes on to be convicted.
As of Wednesday, Hennepin County Jail records showed Freeman was still in custody and awaiting a Wednesday afternoon court appearance.
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