Eden Prairie hit-and-run: Public safety chaplain under investigation

Eden Prairie hit-and-run answers sought

Eden Prairie police are looking for a vehicle that they believe hit a mother and her two kids on Thursday evening, leaving one of them in critical condition. FOX 9’s Leon Purvis has the details.

EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. (FOX 9) - The Minnesota State Patrol is investigating an Eden Prairie volunteer public safety chaplain in connection with a hit-and-run crash that injured a mother and her children. 

The suspect is not currently volunteering as a chaplain while the investigation is pending, according to the City of Eden Prairie. 

READ MORE: Eden Prairie PD transfers hit-and-run investigation to State Patrol

Eden Prairie hit-and-run search warrant

What they're saying:

The search warrant details how the Minnesota State Patrol (MSP) was asked to take over the hit-and-run investigation after Eden Prarie police identified a possible suspect who works for the Eden Prairie Police Department.

The MSP investigator then met the suspect at his home in Eden Prairie, where a red Chevy Silverado pickup truck was parked, the search warrant states. 

Previous reports from witnesses and police say the vehicle involved in the hit-and-run was a white sedan.

That truck was found to have "fresh damage to the left front, left center and driver-side mirror" according to the search warrant. The investigator also documented that a suspected assembly cover for a side mirror recovered at the scene of the crash matched the truck's remaining passenger side mirror assembly. There was also fresh scuffs, scrapes and large dent that indicated a fresh impact. 

The suspect then agreed to speak to the investigator without an attorney. 

The search warrant states that the suspect admitted to driving north on Mitchell Road around 8 p.m. on Aug. 21, which is the same approximate time and location of the crash. 

The suspect then said he was distracted by a text message on his cell phone, and "heard a bump" when he went to open the message, according to the search warrant. The suspect then said he never called 911 to report the crash or damage and did not stop to check what he hit despite seeing that his mirror was damaged. He later cut the broken mirror off.

The search warrant states that the suspect's vehicle and cell phone were both seized as evidence. 

FOX 9 is not naming the suspect as no criminal charges have been filed yet. 

Eden Prairie crosswalk collision

The backstory:

The crash happened at the intersection of Mitchell Road and Chestnut Drive around 8:20 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 21. 

A woman was walking with her four children, two of whom were in a wagon.

A girl riding in the wagon was injured in the crash and taken to the hospital for severe injuries. As of Aug. 24, the child was listed in critical condition. Eden Prairie officials have not been able to provide an update on her status. 

Eden Prairie police said the other child injured in the crash, who was also in the wagon, was treated and released. 

The other two children walking on foot were not injured.

 The mother, 27, was treated and released from the hospital after she sustained serious, but non-life-threatening injuries.