A preliminary investigation by Minnesota officials suggests the fatal shooting of an Australian woman, Justine Damond, by a Minneapolis police officer may have been sparked by a “loud sound” near the police car.

In a statement, the Minnesota Department of Public Safety Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) confirmed the identity of the two Minneapolis police officers involved in the incident as Matthew Harrity and Mohamed Noor, who has been identified in local media as the officer who allegedly shot Damond.

The bureau said it had interviewed Harrity but Noor had declined to be interviewed by BCA agents.

Betsy Hodges, mayor of Minneapolis, told a press conference in Minneapolis on Tuesday night: “We cannot by law compel Officer Noor to make a statement. I wish that he would.

“I wish that he would because he has a story to tell that only he can tell.”



The BCA said: “The officers drove south through the alley between Washburn and Xerxes avenues toward West 51st Street in search of a suspect. All squad lights were off.

“As they reached West 51st Street, officer Harrity indicated that he was startled by a loud sound near the squad. Immediately afterward [Damond] approached the driver’s side window of the squad. Harrity indicated that officer Noor discharged his weapon, striking [Damond] through the open driver’s side window.

“Officer Harrity told investigators that the officers saw an 18 to 25-year-old white male who was bicycling eastbound on West 51st Street immediately before the shooting. This individual stopped at the scene and watched as the officers provided medical assistance ... BCA agents would like to speak with this person and anyone else who may have witnessed the incident.”

Hodges said: “I would implore the person to come forward.”

The bureau said body cameras were not turned on until after the shooting. “The squad camera was not turned on. Investigators are aware of no video or audio of the shooting.”

Hodges said: “The information from the BCA gets us closer to having answers, closer to having justice done … We have some of the picture, but not all of it.

“I share the frustration and dismay that we don’t have body camera footage here.”



The Australian prime minister, Malcolm Turnbull, called the fatal shooting of Damond on the weekend “shocking” and “inexplicable” and said his diplomats were seeking answers from US authorities.

Damond, who was originally from Sydney, was in her pyjamas when she was shot around midnight on Saturday while police were responding to an emergency call she had placed about a possible assault behind her house in a quiet residential neighbourhood.

Justine Damond’s family and friends gather on Freshwater beach in Sydney and throw flowers into the ocean. Photograph: Dean Lewins/AAP

In an interview with Channel Nine on Wednesday morning, Turnbull said he and the Australian consul general in Chicago were “seeking answers”.

“How can a woman out in the street in her pyjamas seeking assistance be shot like that?” the prime minister said. “It is a shocking killing and, yes, we are demanding answers on behalf of her family.”

The BCA, which reviews shootings involving the police in Minneapolis, said both officers have been placed on administrative leave.



The BCA said that unless more people come forward, there are no additional interviews scheduled.

David Klinger, a criminal justice professor at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, said police officers can’t be compelled to testify in an outside investigation.

“Police officers are citizens ... they have the same fifth amendment right as anyone. They don’t have to give a statement,” Klinger said. “His lawyer might be saying, you’re not going to talk until I feel you’re rested and not under stress.”

Dozens of pink flowers were cast into the water at Freshwater beach in Sydney as Damond’s family and friends gathered to pay tribute to her on Wednesday morning.

Holding a bouquet of pink flowers and flanked by relatives, Damond’s father, John Ruszczyk, appeared emotional as he walked to the shoreline at the dawn vigil.

His daughter, who was remembered as a kind, funny and loving woman, was raised on the northern beaches and attended nearby Manly high school.

Family, friends and community members stood in silence for about half an hour holding single candles and clutching flowers in pink, her favourite colour, as the sun rose over the water.

Damond died of a gunshot wound in the abdomen, the Hennepin county medical examiner’s office said in concluding that her death was a homicide.

Hodges, and the American Civil Liberties Union of Minnesota have questioned why Minneapolis police did not have their body cameras and vehicle dashboard camera turned on at the time.

Damond, who was also known as Justine Ruszczyk, had taken the name of her American fiance, Don Damond, ahead of their wedding. She owned a meditation and life-coaching company, according to her personal website.

Minneapolis police chief Janee Harteau called Damond’s death “tragic” in a statement on Monday and promised a “transparent” investigation.

Noor’s lawyer, Tom Plunkett, said that Noor extends his condolences to Damond’s family. The statement did not describe Noor’s alleged role in the shooting and authorities have not confirmed the identities of the officers involved.

Don Damond, who says he has been kept in the dark about the police investigation, has described his fiance’s death as a loss to everyone who knew her.

“Our hearts are broken and we are utterly devastated by the loss of Justine,” he said earlier this week. “It is difficult to fathom how to go forward without her in my life.”