Four people were injured and one killed in a shooting that occured at Allina Health Clinic in Buffalo Tuesday morning. 

The shooting suspect, Gregory Paul Ulrich, 67 of Buffalo, was in custody after the incident took place just before noon.

Buffalo Police Chief Pat Budke said three people were critically injured and were airlifted out. Blood, broken windows and a suspicious package at the clinic led many to believe a bomb was also involved. Budke dispelled those rumors and said there were no bombs on the scene.

Several other law enforcement agencies responded to the incident including the ATF out of St. Paul. They headed to the facility after reports came in of an “active shooter.” Minneapolis Police spokesman John Elder said there was “zero indication” of a threat to Minneapolis but said police sent resources to assist with the incident.

A spokeswoman for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms said the agency also sent a crew to the scene. The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension also tweeted that it had special agents and crime scene personnel at the scene.

North Memorial Health spokeswoman Abigail Greenheck said multiple victims were brought to its hospital in Robbinsdale. By Wednesday morning, the hospital said one person died (37-Year-Old Lindsay Overbay) and three victims remained in critical but stable condition.The fourth person was released from that facility Tuesday afternoon.

Due to the situation, Buffalo-Hanover-Montrose Schools canceled all evening activities.

Big Lake Schools issued a statement on the day of the shooting via social media stating: “As you may have heard this afternoon there was an incident involving a gunman at the Allina Clinic in Buffalo, Minnesota. Due to the close proximity of Wright Technical Center (WTC) to the Allina Clinic, the building was immediately placed into lockdown. Big Lake Schools did have students and staff in attendance at WTC and we are thankful that they are safe.” 

It went on to say: “Any students that were scheduled to attend WTC this afternoon have been contacted and informed not to attend. We are grateful for the quick response of the administrative team at Wright Technical Center and the law enforcement who responded quickly to protect the students and faculty there. At this time details of the situation at Allina Clinic are still unfolding and more information will be shared by law enforcement on the scene.”

The Suspect

Wright County Sheriff Sean Deringer identified the suspect as Gregory Paul Ulrich, a 67-year-old man from Buffalo.

Budke said Ulrich has had contact with the health care community in Buffalo and has lived there for a long time.

“It’s a history that spans several years and there certainly is a history of him being unhappy with the health care that he received,” Budke said.

Wright County Sheriff Sean Deringer said that Ulrich is “no stranger to law enforcement” and has been involved in multiple calls for service dating all the way back to 2003.

“There is no information at this time that leads us to believe that there is any nexus with domestic terrorism,” Budke added. “We are very familiar with the suspect.”

Deringer said that when his deputies responded to the clinic, “It was a horrible-looking scene.”

During a secondary search after evacuation, the sheriff said a suspicious package was found in the lobby and the Minneapolis Bomb Squad began an investigation.

Deringer said after responding to the clinic, they received information that Ulrich was staying at the Super 8 Motel nearby and “out of an abundance of caution” they sent crews over there. He said explosive devices were found there as well, but everyone was safely evacuated.

Deringer said they believe Ulrich acted alone and so there is no search for other suspects and “time is on our side” with the investigation.

“Our heart breaks as a community,” Chief Budke said. “This is a day that no community would want to go through. Especially those staff that were there and of course those that were injured, the families of those that were injured. Our thoughts and prayers are with them.”

Buffalo Mayor Teri Lachermeier called on the community to come together and support one another.

“This doesn’t happen in Buffalo, Minnesota, right?” she said. “Reach out, check on people, make sure they’re OK.”

10:45 A.M.

A woman named Kathy who had just entered the clinic before the shooting started and said she had just checked in and was walking to take a seat when she heard a man say “get down on the ground.” Kathy said she turned, saw that the man had a gun, and then “there was screaming and there was shooting.” 

Kathy went to hide in the clinic’s coffee nook, and said she then heard more shooting from the back of the clinic. “I didn’t know what to do,” she said tearfully, fighting for words. 

She described Ulrich as an older man with gray hair. “I can see his face,” she recalled. Kathy called 911 shortly before the man returned to the front of the building, and called authorities himself. “I heard him say ‘I’m gonna call 911,’  and then he himself called 911. He said ‘there was a shooting, you better send lots of ambulances.”

“I’ve never, just never experienced anything like this in my life,” Kathy said.

Police dispatch audio initially reported 15 shots fired, and later shared an audio clip of an officer reporting as many as five critically wounded. Dispatchers were heard on Broadcastify stating that a male said he had four “homemade explosives” that all went off.

Audio from Broadcastify also indicated that a Super 8 Motel a relatively short distance from the clinic was evacuated, and radio traffic mentioned that “room 110” may have been where the suspect was staying. Dispatchers say suitcases were still inside that room when the building was searched.

Ulrich had threatened mass shooting and other revenge scenarios in several 2018 phone calls with his doctor in 2018, said a Buffalo Police Department report. His complaints may have stemmed from a number of back surgeries and subsequent medications, police said.

He had threatened four Allina Health clinics, the report states, and said he wanted to plan something “big and sensational so that it makes an impact.”

Court records indicate Ulrich was convicted several times of driving while intoxicated and possessing small amounts of marijuana, including two convictions for gross misdemeanor drunken driving that resulted in short jail sentences. In 2018, he was arrested in Buffalo on the charge of violation of a harassment restraining order, according to court records.

Ulrich was expected to appear in court Thursday morning, Wright County Attorney Brian Lutes said.