Flowers and tributes appeared outside the leasing office as residents remembered workers they had known for years.
ST. PAUL, Minn. — Residents of a Highland Park apartment complex gathered around a growing memorial Tuesday as they mourned three leasing office employees killed in a shooting and tried to understand the violence that struck a familiar part of their community.
Nansi Fuentes Zambrano, 25, Dena Silcox, 56, and Adam Wilwerding, 43, were found dead Monday afternoon inside the leasing office near St. Paul Avenue and West Seventh Street. Prosecutors have charged a tenant, 30-year-old Tsegaab Ademassu Binessu, with three counts of second-degree murder. The charges are allegations, and Binessu has not been convicted.
For people who lived at the complex, the office was more than a place to sign rental papers or ask maintenance questions. It was a routine gathering point staffed by people residents saw throughout the week. By Tuesday, mourners were leaving flowers and other tributes outside the building while sharing memories of the employees and offering support to one another.
Tracy Stevens, who has lived at the apartments for seven years, said her building is next to the leasing office. She said she first realized something was wrong when she returned home and saw armed officers and blocked streets. She later learned that she knew all three people who had died.
“It’s tragic. It’s a shame,” Stevens said. “And I don’t understand why.”
Former apartment employee Hayen Erickson also stopped at the memorial. Erickson said he had worked at the property for several months before transferring elsewhere and had gotten to know the office staff. He was among the residents, former colleagues and neighbors who came to recognize the victims as the criminal investigation moved into court.
Police were called to the complex at about 4:10 p.m. Monday after several people reported screams and gunshots. Officers found three people dead inside the leasing area and evacuated the building while searching for the person responsible. The large police response blocked nearby streets and left residents waiting for information about whether it was safe to return.
Authorities arrested Binessu later Monday in Virginia, Minnesota, on the Iron Range. Prosecutors allege that the shooting followed a disagreement over his effort to cancel a $65-per-month parking garage contract. Apartment staff had told him that he remained responsible for payments because he had recently renewed the agreement, according to the criminal complaint.
The complaint says surveillance video showed Binessu speaking with Silcox and Wilwerding before drawing a handgun and firing. Prosecutors allege that he then moved down a hallway, where another scream and more shots were heard. Fuentes Zambrano was found in another part of the office. Investigators recovered 21 spent cartridge casings, according to the filing.
The account in the complaint has given residents a description of what authorities believe happened, but it has not answered the broader questions surrounding the loss. Community members said the three victims were familiar figures at the property, and the speed and scale of the violence left people struggling to connect an ordinary rental disagreement with three deaths.
Ramsey County Attorney John Choi said the shooting had shaken the community and offered condolences to the victims’ relatives and friends. He also thanked St. Paul police and other agencies for arresting a suspect within hours of the killings.
The leasing office remained the center of both the investigation and the public mourning. Residents expressed relief that a suspect was in custody while also grieving people they had seen at work and spoken with during their daily lives. No public information had been released about funeral arrangements for all three victims when this article was updated.
Binessu was scheduled for an initial court appearance Wednesday. The legal case will determine whether prosecutors can prove the allegations, while residents and the victims’ families continue to mourn three lives lost in a place meant to serve their community.
Author note: Last updated July 22, 2026.