Police Officer Beaten on the Head with Hammer



Luke Oeltjenbruns beat a police officer on the head with a hammer
Luke Oeltjenbruns

Police Officer Responds to Assault Call

(MN) – A police officer with the Hutchinson Police Department, was injured when confronting a suspect on April 16. Officer Steve Sickmann was one of the officers who responded to a call about an assault at a Menard’s store. An individual, Luke Oeltjenbruns, was getting ready to check out when an employee told him he needed to wear a mask. Oeltjenbruns refused and tried to leave the store without paying for his items. The employee blocked the cart.

According to CBS Minnesota, “Oeltjenbruns then struck the employee six or seven times over the head with one of the furring strips in his cart.” Store employees copied his license plate number and called the police.

Assault With a Deadly Weapon

While some officers were getting information from the store employees, other officers were looking for the vehicle. They found Mr. Oeltjenbruns in a Walmart parking lot. Oeltjenbruns drove slowly, but refused to stop. He did eventually stop at a red light. Per Fox 9, “…officers approached him with their weapons drawn. He rolled down his window and told the officers “that he did not care and to shoot him,” the charges state.” 

Oeltjenbruns refused their commands to get out and drove away. Police officers were able to block him at an intersection. That is when Officer Sickmann jumped on the truck’s running board and attempted to reach in to shut off the truck. Oeltjenbruns grabbed Officer Sickmann’s arm, rolled up the window to trap him, then began ramming his truck into the police cars. He then sped off with Officer Sickmann hanging onto the side of the truck.

Officer Sickmann was able to get a rescue hammer and attempted to use it to break the window. Oeltjenbruns grabbed the hammer away from Officer Sickmann then struck him on the head with it. Officers were finally able to stop Oeltjenbruns and take him into custody. Officer Sickmann was taken to the hospital.

Surgical Staples Required on Police Officer’s Head

The store employee did have some minor injuries, but the more serious injuries were received by Officer Sickmann. CBS Minnesota’s article states, “The complaint says Sickmann was taken to the hospital and received eight metal staples on his head, and had a large abrasion on his right inner arm area from his shoulder to lower arm.” Officer Sickmann, who is a 31-year veteran with the police department, is recovering at home.

Oeltjenbruns Receives Four Felony Charges

Per Fox 9, “Luke Alvin Oeltjenbruns is charged with one count of first-degree assault, two counts of second-degree assault and one count of fleeing a police officer, causing bodily injury.” He received a cash bail amount of $100,000 or a bail bond amount of $500,000.

Racial Bias

While I’m happy that no one was killed, it’s hard to ignore the difference in the way this white man was treated as opposed to how minorities are treated. We can hardly keep track of all the unarmed Black men who have been killed. Black men and women have even been killed in their homes by police officers.  We are currently mourning the death of a 13-year old Latino child.

But here’s a white man traps a police officer’s arm in his window. He then rams his truck into police vehicles and beats the police officer on the head a rescue hammer. This man, a man who appeared to be trying to kill a police officer, was arrested without any injuries. Amazing.

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