Shooting at Des Moines post office injures at least three, suspect in custody

What happened

On Thursday, 5 November 2026, a shooting at the main post office in downtown Des Moines, Iowa, left multiple people injured, according to the authorities. The New York Times reported at least three injured, and the Des Moines Police Department said a suspect was in custody outside the building. A statement from the department said the suspect had been detained. Early reports did not give the condition of the injured or the identity of the suspect.

Location and response

Sgt. Paul Parizek of the Des Moines Police Department said the shooting took place on the second floor of the city's downtown post office on Second Avenue, speaking briefly to reporters. The building lies just north of downtown and directly across the street from one of the city's main hospitals, according to AP. The Independent reported that a multi-agency operation was working at the scene at 1165 Second Avenue. Police closed northbound traffic on Second Avenue, sent drivers back south toward downtown, and asked people to avoid the intersection of Second and University avenues while officers secured the site.

Timeline of the morning

According to Parizek, police received reports of gunfire at the building at 9:10 a.m. Officers responded within three minutes of those reports. The timeline below sets out these two points.

What is still unclear

The injuries are described only as multiple or at least three people, and the reports do not give their condition. Police have not released the identity of the detained suspect in the material available so far. The Independent described the incident as an active shooter situation, a characterisation that the police statements cited in the reports do not repeat. The initial investigation was still under way when the articles were published, and no further updates on casualties or charges were in the source reports.