Burnsville Woman Indicted for Straw Purchasing Firearms Used in Fatal Shooting of Three First Responders
MINNEAPOLIS — A Burnsville woman has been indicted for straw purchasing multiple firearms for a felon, two of which were used to fatally shoot two police officers and a firefighter paramedic and injure a third police officer in Burnsville on Feb. 18, announced U.S. Attorney Andrew M. Luger.
According to court documents, between Sept. 21, 2023, and Jan. 25, 2024, Ashley Anne Dyrdahl, 35, conspired with Shannon Cortez Gooden to place firearms in Gooden’s hands, despite the fact Gooden could not legally own or possess firearms. On Feb. 18, Gooden used the firearms that Dyrdahl supplied to murder two police officers and a firefighter paramedic, and injure a third officer, during an armed stand-off with law enforcement officers who were responding to a call for help.
According to the indictment, in 2008, Gooden was convicted in Dakota County of second-degree assault, a felony offense. In 2016, Dyrdahl began a domestic relationship with Gooden and, as early as 2019, knew that Gooden had been convicted of a felony offense. In 2020, Dyrdahl filed a letter in support of Gooden’s petition to restore his firearm rights in which she acknowledged his conviction and crime. Despite knowing of Gooden’s felony status, between September of 2023 and January of 2024, Dyrdahl purchased five firearms from two different federal firearms licensees (FFLs) at Gooden’s direction and knowingly and intentionally transferred the firearms to Gooden.
As part of the conspiracy alleged in the indictment, Gooden sent text messages to Dyrdahl of firearms he wanted her to purchase. Dyrdahl placed the orders at FFLs and filled out ATF Forms 4473 falsely attesting that she was the actual buyer of the firearm, and falsely attesting that she was not planning to transfer the firearm to a felon. During a text exchange between Dyrdahl and Gooden discussing background checks and other questions from firearm sellers, Dyrdahl told Gooden, “We just gotta make sure we’re smart about all this ya know?”
As part of the conspiracy alleged in the indictment, on Sept. 21, 2023, Dyrdahl bought a Glock 47 9mm semiautomatic pistol from an FFL. The same day, Dyrdahl sent Gooden a text asking him how he liked the new gun. Gooden responded with a video in which he displayed the firearm and its attachments, then loaded the firearm with an extended magazine. Dyrdahl replied to the video with a smiling heart emoji. In a text exchange on Oct. 24, 2023, Dyrdahl and Gooden discussed purchasing another firearm. Gooden sent Dyrdahl a link to a Glock 43X 9mm semiautomatic pistol for sale, specified which Burnsville FFL she should have the firearm sent to, and said he would send her money for the firearm. Dyrdahl ordered the firearm, texted Gooden a confirmation of the purchase, and said, “Ordered,” to which Gooden replied, “Love you.” On Oct. 30, 2023, Dyrdahl picked up the Glock 43X pistol from the FFL and transferred it to Gooden.
According to the indictment, among the firearms Dyrdahl bought and transferred to Gooden at Gooden’s direction were three semiautomatic AR-15–style firearm lower-receivers. One of these was a Franklin Armory FAI-15 .300 caliber semiautomatic firearm that was equipped with a binary trigger. A firearm with a binary trigger fires one shot when the trigger is pulled, and another when the trigger is released, effectively doubling the rate of fire. Dyrdahl also purchased a .300 caliber barrel for the lower receiver. Dyrdahl knew that Gooden was loading the semiautomatic AR-15–style firearms with .300 Blackout ammunition, which is a heavier load ammunition that has an increased potential for lethality.
According to the indictment, on Feb. 10, Gooden went to a shooting range. While at the range, he and Dyrdahl had the following text exchange:
Gooden: I love my 300 blackout
Dyrdahl: Haha good baby
Dyrdahl: That’s your 300 blackout?
Dyrdahl: Wow
Dyrdahl: [Smiling heart emoji]
Gooden: It’s nasty bae
Dyrdahl: hell yeah …
Gooden: Thanks for making me so happy
Dyrdahl: You’re welcome baby thank you for making me so happy to [sic]
According to the indictment, on Feb. 18, Gooden used two AR-15-style semiautomatic firearms Dyrdahl provided to him—the firearm equipped with a binary trigger and loaded with .300 Blackout ammunition, and a Palmetto State Armory model PA-15 firearm—to ambush first responders, killing two police officers and a firefighter paramedic and injuring a third police officer. During the attack, Gooden fired more than 100 rounds of ammunition from the AR-15–style firearms. After the attack, law enforcement officers found in Dyrdahl and Gooden’s bedroom a stockpile of fully loaded magazines as well as boxes with hundreds of additional rounds of ammunition.
According to the indictment, at Gooden’s direction, Dyrdahl knowingly purchased five firearms, including a Glock model 47 9mm semiautomatic pistol purchased on Sept. 21, 2023; a Palmetto State Armory model Sabre-15 firearm lower receiver purchased on Oct. 18, 2023; a Glock model 43X 9mm semiautomatic pistol purchased on Oct. 30, 2023; a Franklin Armory FAI-15 firearm lower receiver purchased on Jan. 5; and a Palmetto State Armory PA-15 firearm lower receiver purchased on Jan. 25. Dyrdahl knowingly made false and fictitious written statements to the FFLs when purchasing the firearms by falsely indicating on ATF Forms 4473 that she was the actual buyer of the firearms.
Because Gooden had a prior felony conviction, he was prohibited under federal law from possessing firearms or ammunition at any time.
The indictment charges Dyrdahl with one count of conspiracy, five counts of straw purchasing and five counts of making false statements during the purchase of a firearm. She will make her initial appearance in U.S. District Court today before Magistrate Judge Elizabeth Cowan Wright.
This case is the result of an investigation conducted by the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the Burnsville Police Department, with assistance from the Dakota County Attorney’s Office and the Burnsville Fire Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kristian Weir and Thomas Calhoun-Lopez are prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an allegation, and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
###
