Incident: Friday, October 9, 2026, 2900 block of South Keyrell Drive, Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Death announced by the Minnehaha County Sheriff’s Office on Monday, October 12, 2026.
Minnehaha County Sheriff’s Deputy Katherine Frank, 26, died Monday, three days after she was shot on a call in southwest Sioux Falls.
Three deputies responded to the 2900 block of South Keyrell Drive and arrived at about 7:30 p.m. Friday. At approximately 8:02 p.m., shots were fired, and Frank and the suspect were both struck, Josh Phillips, the county’s sheriff-elect, said at a Saturday news conference. Deputies gave medical aid to both at the scene, and both were taken to a hospital.
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The sheriff’s office has not released why deputies were called to the address, and authorities have not said who fired the shots that struck the suspect.
Frank was surrounded by family and loved ones when she died, and she was an organ donor, the sheriff’s office said.
She joined the sheriff’s office in June 2024. Before that, she worked at the South Dakota State Penitentiary beginning in September 2022.
“Deputy Frank’s death is a significant loss to our agency and to the broader law enforcement community in and around Sioux Falls,” Sheriff Mike Milstead and Sheriff-elect Phillips said in a joint statement. “Deputy Frank served with dignity and heart.”
Minnehaha County State’s Attorney Daniel Haggar said Saturday that his office initiated a criminal complaint against Brandon Oetken, 39, on three counts of attempted first-degree murder of a law enforcement officer and three counts of aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer. Monday was a state holiday, and the charges had not yet been filed in court, KELOLAND reported. Any change to the charges following Frank’s death had not been announced as of Monday evening. Oetken is presumed innocent.
The South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation is leading the investigation, and the Attorney General’s Office has said it will release a summary of its findings within 30 days.
Frank is the first South Dakota law enforcement officer shot in the line of duty to die since 2011, KELOLAND reported, citing the Officer Down Memorial Page.
A memorial has been set up at the Law Enforcement Center, 320 W. 4th St., in downtown Sioux Falls. The Minnehaha County Deputies Association has started a fund for her family. Funeral arrangements have not been released.
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