ST. PAUL -- The Willmar man shot by law enforcement officers after a pursuit Monday now faces burglary and fleeing charges.
George Francis Walley, 28, has been charged in Stearns County with first-degree burglary with a dangerous weapon, first-degree burglary in an occupied structure and fleeing a peace officer in a vehicle, according to a news release from the state Department of Public Safety. Additional charges are possible.
Early Monday, Waite Park police attempted to stop a vehicle that had been reported stolen. The driver fled police, beginning a pursuit that ended on State Highway 23 near the city of Milaca. Following the pursuit, Walley was shot and injured.
He was flown to North Memorial Medical Center in Robbinsdale, where he is continuing to receive treatment, the release states.
Kandiyohi County authorities had been asked to assist in locating Walley early Monday prior to the chase.
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The incident appears to have begun in Meeker County. Around 12:40 a.m. Monday, authorities there received report of a possible drunken driver northbound from Litchfield on state Highway 24. The caller also advised that the driver had made earlier suicidal threats, according to information from Sheriff Mike Hirman.
Deputies from Meeker County and Eden Valley police officers searched the area. The abandoned vehicle was later found by Stearns County sheriff's deputies.
Reports show that Kandiyohi County authorities were called around 1 a.m. to assist in locating Walley after he had rammed another car with his vehicle and had kicked his passenger out
Around 3 a.m., local officials received another call from Stearns County, stating that there had been a home invasion around 2:50 a.m. Lake Koronis where an elderly homeowner had been assaulted with a handgun. A green Hyundai was taken from that residence.
Multiple law enforcement agencies were involved in the pursuit, including the State Patrol, Mille Lacs Tribal Police, St. Joseph and St. Cloud police, and the Benton, Mille Lacs and Stearns counties sheriff's offices.
No law enforcement officers were injured.
Four Minnesota State Troopers were placed on administrative leave as a result of the incident. They are Troopers Robyn Birr, Jason Groh, James Kotten and Jeffrey Schroepfer. According to the news release, placing troopers on administrative leave is part of normal operating procedure when troopers are involved in critical incidents of this nature. Two Mille Lacs County deputies also were placed on administrative leave.
The Bureau of Criminal Apprehension is investigating the incident.
