Search warrants: Gun, spent bullet casings found in Winston Smith’s vehicle

Search warrants obtained by 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS reveal what Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension investigators found during a search of Winston Smith’s vehicle.

According to the warrants, investigators recovered a Smith and Wesson M&P 380 pistol loaded with seven rounds inside the vehicle.

BCA agents also collected bullet fragments, as well as cash, from inside the vehicle.

Whether Smith fired at the officers has been a point of contention in the investigation.

The BCA says evidence shows Smith fired a handgun and spent cartridge cases were found inside the vehicle, but attorneys representing a woman who was with Smith at the time of the shooting said she never saw a gun with Smith or in the vehicle.

On June 3, Smith was killed after two sheriff’s deputies, one from Ramsey County and Hennepin County, shot him during an attempted warrant arrest regarding a suspected firearms violation.

The BCA said that at the time of the incident, the U.S. Marshall Services did not allow body cameras for officers serving on the North Star Fugitive Task Force. Since then, the agency has agreed to allow local law enforcement to use body cameras while assigned to the task force.

There is no squad camera footage of the incident either, according to the BCA. It remains unclear if there was other surveillance in the area that captured the incident.