Hero officer in mall attack back to work at shooting range

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The only clues are on the wall behind the front counter: thank you cards. In front of the wall, the business owner converses with customers like he would on any busy Tuesday afternoon.

The scene hints at what the business owner did: end a stabbing rampage at a St. Cloud, Minn. mall. It also shows how he has responded to questions about his actions: humbly, while calmly avoiding details as the investigation continues.

Investigators say Jason Falconer, owner of Tactical Advantage, in Waite Park, is responsible for stopping 20-year-old Dahir Adan from stabbing any additional shoppers at Crossroads Center on Saturday night. Falconer was at the mall, looking for a birthday gift for his son, when he saw the attack.

Falconer is avoiding on-camera interviews and any specific comments related to the attack, while the investigation continues. However, he told Fox 9 he is grateful for the support he has received.

“I work for a very good man. He did what needed to be done,” Pete Jansky, an employee at Tactical Advantage, told Fox 9. Jansky, like Falconer, was once the police chief for the Albany Police Department. In fact, many of Falconer’s employees have law enforcement experience. A “Thin Blue Line” flag hangs in the retail area.

A tour of Falconer’s business reveals his priority: safety. There are always safety signs within eyesight — on his range and in his classroom.

“One thing is we’re very safety conscious here,” Jansky told Fox 9. “Tactical Advantage offers training as far as conceal and carry, beginning firearms, a lot of safety programs we teach here.”

Falconer told Fox 9 he provides firearm training to the Avon Police Department, where he works part-time. During some sessions, he turns off the lights on his gun range for night training.

One target, Falconer said, he often uses for permit-to-carry training shows a man holding a knife.

In the back corner of the business is a young German Shepherd sleeping on a chair. Falconer says the dog’s name is Kaia, a name chosen by his kids. An employee calls the dog the businesses’s “mascot.”