MONTROSE, Minn. — A Montrose man is charged with 11 felony counts in connection with a standoff that ended with him being shot by law enforcement.
Prosecutors laid out the charges against 36-year-old Matthew Thomas Lyrek in a criminal complaint released Monday. The crimes he is charged with range from first-degree assault/use of deadly force against a police officer to possession of a firearm by a person subject to an order for protection.
Court documents say officers and deputies from multiple departments were dispatched to the Dollar General Store shortly before 1 p.m. on April 15 after receiving reports that Lyrek - wanted on warrants in three counties for violating an order for protection, making threats of violence and fleeing officers - was at the store. Responding law enforcement saw Lyrek's vehicle, described as a unique dually Dodge pickup, parked in the store's lot and empty, suggesting that he was inside the business.
According to the complaint, three Wright County Sheriff's deputies on scene reportedly devised a plan to arrest Lyrek as soon as he returned to his vehicle. One was armed with a rifle, while the other two carried tasers. When Lyrek left the store and approached his truck, all three deputies moved towards the vehicle, with one shouting to the defendant that he was under arrest.
The officers allege that Lyrek then reached for his waist, grabbed a handgun and began raising it. One deputy deployed a taser, causing Lyrek to fall backwards, but officers say the defendant maintained control of the gun and pointed it at one of them. It was at that point that Wright County deputy Andrew Lundeen fired his rifle, and another deputy fired his weapon, the complaints states. Witnesses say Lyrek was struck by gunfire, but continued to hold the gun and point at officers.
The complaint says deputies repeatedly told Lyrek to drop the gun but he refused, allegedly shouting profanities at law enforcement on the scene. A deputy who arrived after the original confrontation eventually shot the defendant with multiple non-lethal rounds in an effort to end the standoff. Minutes later Lyrek reportedly dropped the gun, allowing deputies to approach and take him into custody. As he was being arrested, a second pistol was discovered in Lyrek's waistband.
Deputies on scene provided medical aid to Lyrek, who suffered multiple gunshot wounds, until paramedics arrived and took him to Hennepin County Medical Center.
BCA agents called in to handle the officer-involved shooting located two pistols that were carried by the defendant, and another two firearms in his pickup. A search of Lyrek's residence yielded another five firearms, three of which were loaded and ready for use. More than 29,000 live rounds of various calibers were collected by law enforcement.
Prosecutors note that as the subject of an order for protection, Matthew Lyrek was not allowed to possess firearms or ammunition, and did not have a permit to carry a gun in public.
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