ST. PAUL, Minn. (KFGO) – The Midwest Medical Examiner’s Office has identified the man who died during an officer-involved shooting on Apr. 28 in Bowlus, Minn.
The medical examiner determined that Charles Francis Bangs, 59, of Fergus Falls died of multiple gunshot wounds. Michael Gene Johnson, 51, also of Fergus Falls, was injured by gunfire during the incident.
The BCA has also identified two officers who discharged their weapons during the incident.
Trooper Megan Boser and Deputy Dale Haberer each fired their department-issued handguns.
Boser has been with the Minnesota State Patrol for four years. Haberer has been with the Otter Tail County Sheriff’s Office for 10 years and is a member of the West Central Drug Task Force.
On Apr. 28, the West Central Drug Task Force was attempting to locate Bangs as part of a narcotics investigation. At around 3 p.m., in Mille Lacs County, a state trooper stopped a car Bangs was driving. Three passengers were in the car, including Johnson, Bryant Allen Guida, 32, of Moorhead, and another man. A Mille Lacs County Deputy also responded to the traffic stop.
At one point, the trooper asked Johnson to exit the vehicle. He refused, pushed the trooper by reaching out of an open car door, and engaged in a scuffle.
Bangs drove away, starting a pursuit with the deputy.
During the pursuit, a substance suspected to be methamphetamine was thrown from the vehicle and recovered by a Mille Lacs County Deputy. It has been submitted for testing. The pursuit ended with Bangs’ vehicle leaving the area.
Later that day, law enforcement again located Bangs near Bowlus in Morrison County. When officers tried to make contact, he again fled in his vehicle with two passengers – Johnson and Guida.
Officers were able to stop the vehicle. At one point, two officers discharged their firearms, striking Bangs and Johnson.
Bangs died at the scene. Johnson was transported for treatment and has since been released. The Mille Lacs County Sheriff’s Office arrested him and he is in custody at the county jail, pending charges related to the traffic stop earlier in the day.
Guida also faces a charge related to an earlier incident.
BCA crime scene personnel recovered a handgun at the scene. Trooper Boser was wearing a body camera and had a working squad camera, both of which captured portions of the incident.
The Morrison County Sheriff’s Office requested that the BCA investigate the incident. Once the investigation is complete, the BCA will present its findings without recommendation to the Morrison County Attorney’s Office for review.
