FARGO (KFGO) – United States Attorney General Merrick Garland met with federal, state, and local law enforcement in Fargo Monday, in the wake of the July 14 ambush-style shooting that took the life of Fargo Police Officer Jake Wallin and seriously wounded two others, as well as a civilian.
Fargo Police Chief David Zibolski and Deputy Chief William Macki of the Grand Forks Police among the meeting attendees, along with two representatives from state Bureau of Criminal Investigation. Local representatives from Homeland Security, the ATF, Customs and Border Patrol, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Postal Inspectors office, and the FBI were in attendance, alongside the criminal and civil division chiefs for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of North Dakota.
U.S. Attorney Mac Schneider introduced Garland, thanking him for the Justice Dept.’s recent “unprecedented” and “game-changing” allocation of three additional Indian Country prosecutors in North Dakota, as well as a violent crime prosecutor focused on Cass County and the Red River Valley.
Garland addressed the media for just over five minutes before starting the discussion with law enforcement, which he characterized as an opportunity to discuss, “things that all sides need in order to get our common mission accomplished.”
Garland began his remarks by addressing the shooting.
“I speak for the entire Department of Justice in expressing my deepest condolences to Officer Wallin’s loved ones who have suffered terrible loss. Just a few minutes ago I met with Winter Malone, Officer Wallin’s fiancé, and there are just no words to express the sorrow and the pain that has been caused,” Garland said.
He called Wallin a “dedicated and courageous public servant,” and said the Justice Department, “will long remember him, and we will seek to honor him in the work we do with our state and local law enforcement.”
He said the actions of Officer Zach Robinson saved countless lives. Robinson ultimately shot and killed the shooter, 37-year-old Mohamed Barakat, after a gunfight that was captured on Robinson’s body cam and released to the public last week.
“Like everyone here I saw the body cam video, and I just had an opportunity to meet with Officer Robinson. I told him that the courage he exhibited under fire was nothing short of amazing. He saved the community from what could have been a catastrophic result. I told him how proud I was of him, how proud the entire country is of him. There’s not many of these body cams that everybody in the country sees and this one I think pretty much everybody did see. And I know how proud this community is of him,” Garland said.
Garland said the Justice Department recognizes the “enormous sacrifices” police officers and their families make. He said he was thinking of Officers Andrew Dotas and Tyler Hawes as they continue to recover from serious injuries suffered in the shooting.
“We are committed to doing everything in our power to provide our law enforcement officers partners with the support they need and deserve – by dedicating resources to programs that support officer health, safety, and wellness, to initiatives to build trust between law enforcement and the communities we serve, to incentives to address the recruitment and retention challenges departments all across the country are facing. And we are doing everything in our power to harness our investigative and prosecutorial resources so that we can be the best partners law enforcement can have,” Garland said.
Garland highlighted the work the U.S. Attorney’s office in North Dakota has done to combat fentanyl trafficking rings, to investigate and prosecute violent crime and human smuggling organizations, and to protect the civil rights of people with disabilities.
A group of protestors gathered outside the federal courthouse while the meeting took place. Former North Dakota legislator and Native American activist Ruth Buffalo said they were there to highlight the lack of action on Savanna’s Act, which became law in 2020 but Buffalo said has yet to be fully implemented. Protestors held “Free Leonard Peltier” banners and signs imploring the Justice Department to make Missing and Murdered Indigenous People (MMIP) prevention a priority.
