Brent Patrick Ahlers

Brent Patrick Ahlers
Born	1992 (age 31–32)
Nationality	USA
Occupation	security guard
Known for	shot himself, told police it was a black man in a a hoodie

Brent Patrick Ahlers is a former security guard who was fired from St Catherine University, after first shooting himself, and then claiming he was shot by a black intruder. His hoax caused police to lock down the entire campus. Fifty-five police officers, four police dogs, and a state police surveillance aircraft, took part in the search.

Background

Ahlers has an Associate Degree in law enforcemnt. He had been employed by the University for fifteen months, prior to the incident of September 12, 2017.

Shooting report of September 12, 2017

Ahlers phoned 9-1-1 at approximately 9:30pm, on September 12, 2017. He reported he was shot by an intruder while patrolling a wooded part of the campus, that was normally deserted, at that time. Local police did not initially release a description of the shooter, but, after he admitted that he had lied about being attacked, the police acknowledged he had described the shooter as a black man wearing a blue "hoodie" style sweatshirt. He claimed the black intruder shot him after he confronted him about smoking cannabis.

On the day following the incident Ahlers admitted that although St Catherine University policy barred all firearms from campus, he had nevertheless, been armed, by his own personal handgun. He accidentally shot himself, and said he reported an intruder shot him, because he was afraid acknowledging he had brought his gun onto campus would get him fired. The radio broadcasts left nearby residents in a state of alarm.

At his sentencing hearing Prosecutors said that Ahler's false claim "caused several young black men in the area to be targeted by police."

The University's initial statement has said that Ahlers had been suspended, with full pay, pending the conclusions of an internal investigation. Representatives of the NAACP criticized Ahlers and the University administration. They asserted that the false claim that a black man was the shooter, and remained at large, eroded the safety of black men. They asserted that the University administration should have gone farther, and should have fired Ahler. The University issued a second statement, later that day, reporting that Ahlers no longer worked for the University.

Ahler's false claims stirred comment in the foreign press.

On October 31, 2017, Ahlers pled guilty to mistleading police -- a misdemeanour. He was sentenced on December 17, 2017. He was fined $4,500, a token to help reimburse the expense of the response his claim required. His sentence would allow him to avoid sixty days of jail time, if the judge concluded that six sessions of sensitivity training had brought home to him the impact his false claim had on the black community.

Police said the reason they did not make his description public was that investigators were skeptical of his account, right from the beginning. However, the description of a black man, with an afro, in a hoodie, was circulated to local police, by radio, and reporters, and local residents who owned police scanners, were aware of the suspect description.

Ahlers was arrested on September 13, 2017, and charged with lying to police -- a misdemeanor. The University fired him the following day, September 14, 2017.

The United Kingdom newspaper, The Independent quoted St Paul Police Department Sergeant Mike Ernster, on the impact Ahler's hoax had on students and the University's neighbors.

“1,800 students (were) held captive in their dorm rooms." “It had residents of the Mac-Groveland and Highland Park communities fearful that a suspect was on the loose and they could be victimised at any moment.”

The Twin Cities Pioneer Press quoted NAACP officials who were critical of Ahlers, for falsely blaming a black man for his wounding. They reported that the NAACP officials were also critical of the University, for not taking more responsibility for their employee.

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