University of Minnesota-Minneapolis ramps up police presence after violent firework attacks

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The University of Minnesota is ramping up weekend public safety measures at its Minneapolis campus after students were attacked with fireworks over Halloween weekend.

A total of four separate incidents were reported to Minneapolis police between Saturday evening and Sunday morning, Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) spokesperson Garrett Parten told Fox News Digital. 

At least three teenaged females between the ages of 18 and 19 were injured in one firecracker incident on the 1600 block of University Avenue SE, Parten said.

The school sent out a public safety alert when the incidents occurred, according to Crime Watch, but it did not share any public statements about the attacks. UMN told Fox News Digital that the attacks occurred off-campus, and MPD is handling an investigation into the incidents.

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At least three teenaged females between the ages of 18 and 19 were injured in one firecracker incident on the 1600 block of University Avenue SE, Parten said. (Google Maps)

MPD also continues to investigate the number of suspects involved. Parten said police received varying reports of "anywhere between" eight and 20 perpetrators. 

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Apparent video footage of the incident posted to Twitter shows a large group of people throwing a firework into a building.

Witnesses told CBS Minneapolis that a group of masked suspects ignited and threw the fireworks into fraternity house yards and the pizza restaurant near Dinkytown. One student, Kyle Garrigan, described the attack at Frank & Andrea's Pizza on 4th Street as "kind of a sensory overload."

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"You got these loud noises, and then you're seeing these lights through the blinds. You're kind of in a panic you don't know what's going on," he told the outlet.

Photos of one alleged victims submitted to Crime Watch Minneapolis show severe burns and injuries as a result of the fireworks.

UMN Senior Vice President for Finance and Operations Myron Frans announced in a Nov. 2 message to the school community that in partnership with the MPD, the school is launching "Operation Gopher Guardian, a targeted law enforcement presence in Dinkytown and the Marcy-Holmes neighborhood."

The UMN Sigma Chi fraternity in Minneapolis was a target of one of the reported firework attacks. (Google Maps)

Frans said the new public safety initiative in Dinkytown will run between Nov. 4 and Nov. 12 on Friday and Saturday evenings into the early morning. The initiative will enlist 10 additional officers from the university's police department and Minneapolis office. 

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"These officers will provide enhanced public safety protection to Minneapolis residents and our University of Minnesota community," he said. "Operation Gopher Guardian will consist of overtime MPD officers, paid for by the University, and increased overtime from UMPD officers in addition to the normal force of officers on duty on campus on any Friday or Saturday evening."

Dinkytown temporarily closed over the summer due to an increase in violence in the area near UMN's campus.