Clay County Attorney Brian Melton
MOORHEAD (KFGO) – Three Fargo Police officers, who are members of the Red River Valley SWAT team, will not be charged after two men were shot and killed in Moorhead last August.
Clay County Attorney Brian Melton says, following a months-long investigation by the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension and thorough review by his office, the use of deadly force was reasonable and justified.
“There’s no question within my mind after review of everything that the use of force was done to protect the peace officers or others from death or grave bodily harm,” Melton said. “You can see it from the video, the shooting at or towards an officer in an attempt to kill him. The fact that they did need to go in there without delay to address the situation, that it was reasonable to address that immediately. We find it is justifiable use of force and we have closed the matter.”
Moorhead Police were called to an apartment at 2414 3rd Avenue N. on Aug. 11 after a woman reported a domestic assault. She said Nathan Heiberg punched her in the face and knocked her down, and she was strangled by Nathan and his brother Lucas Heiberg.
Moorhead Police said the two men barricaded the door and refused to come out. The SWAT team was called after Lucas Heiberg fired one shot from a pistol. Officers say their main priority was to rescue two children who were still inside the apartment.
Clay County Attorney Brian Melton and local law enforcement on Feb. 5, 2026
“When a firearm was pointed at someone, that escalated it quickly,” Melton said. “And unfortunately children were in there and obviously that was their main concern to get in there and make sure those kids were safe. It just happened obviously very quickly.”
Fargo Police Sgt. Kyle Seehausen was the first to enter the apartment and shot Lucas Heiberg four times. Nathan Heiberg was found down the hallway, also with a pistol, and he was shot once by Sgt. Tyler Seehausen. A third officer, Sgt. Michael Anderson, says he saw Lucas Heiberg move and shot him once. Both men died on the scene.
Fargo Police Chief David Zibolski says the officers did what needed to be done to get the two children, ages 5 and 6, out of danger.
“This is obviously an extremely tragic situation. Our SWAT team trains very hard to prevent loss of life, but sometimes, as in this situation, those decisions are taken out of our control,” Zibolski said. “There was grave danger to the Moorhead officers, to our SWAT team, and the children inside that apartment. It appears pretty obvious that the work that they did in going in and dealing with that threat to not only attempt to make an arrest but also get the kids out of a dangerous situation was heroic.”
Members of the SWAT team are seen on body camera footage rescuing two young children in their pajamas. The children were not hurt and no officers were injured.
The three Fargo Police officers can now return to duty following standard administrative leave. Police Chief David Zibolski says his department will also conduct an internal review of the shooting.
Melton says toxicology reports show Lucas Heiberg had cannabis and methamphetamine in his system, and Nathan Heiberg has cannabis and alcohol in his system.
Both men are convicted felons and were not legally allowed to possess firearms.
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