GLENWOOD, Minnesota — Deputy Joshua Owen was shot and killed on April 15 while responding to a domestic abuse call in Cyrus. He died on his 44th birthday.
Friends, family, and community members are mourning the loss of Deputy Owen.
He spent nearly 12 years with the Pope County Sheriff's Office.
"April 15, Pope County law enforcement lost a brother," said Pope County Sheriff Tim Riley, while getting choked up. "Deputy Owen had a heart as big as his stature... he leaves behind a wife and a son. He loved his family, his brotherhood, and his community."
Prior to joining the sheriff's office, Owen served in the military. He met Scott Kowski while serving in the Minnesota Army National Guard.
"When I found out that this had happened... not knowing any details, I texted him and I said, 'Please tell me you're not working tonight' and never got a response," recalled Kowski to photojournalist David Peterlinz.
Kowski said the pair spent 22 months straight together in 2005-2007, deploying to Iraq.
"You have that bond that a lot of people don't understand just because it's... we have each other's backs and you kind of trust them like brothers and sisters and it's blood. It's a different type of family," Kowski said.
After Kowski heard of Owen's death, he said he dug out an old hard drive with pictures from their time together in Iraq.
"It actually brought some smiles to my face just seeing the fun pictures," Kowski said. "Josh was one of those guys that had that humor, attitude. He always had a smile on his face. No matter what we were doing, he always would chuckle."
As a Sauk Centre firefighter, Kowski would sometimes run into Deputy Owen while both working a scene. They stayed in touch online, as well, and last spoke six days ago.
Kowski recalled the conversation, saying, "'Hey, you know what? We need to get together..." If could say one thing now, I would say don't wait to do it. Because you never know what tomorrow brings."
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