Two motorcyclists were killed in weekend crashes in Anoka County, adding to the toll of Minnesota motorcycle operators who lost their lives in recent days.

At least five deaths have been reported statewide since Thursday, according to state and local authorities.

In the Anoka County crashes, Kelly Matthew Linder, 49, of Albert Lea, was killed shortly before noon Saturday in Oak Grove.

According to the Anoka County Sheriff’s Office, Linder was apparently making a left turn in the 3200 block of Viking Boulevard Northwest when an eastbound SUV struck him from behind. Linder was pronounced dead at the scene.

Shortly after noon Sunday, Bradley Alan Brockel, 52, of Ramsey, was killed in Anoka when his motorcycle left the roadway on westbound Green Haven Parkway near Thurston Avenue. Linder was pronounced dead at the scene, according to the sheriff’s office.

In the other fatalities:

A motorcyclist was killed shortly before 7 a.m. Monday in a collision with an SUV at West Arrowhead and Rice Lake roads in Duluth. The motorcyclist, who was pronounced dead at the scene, wasn’t immediately identified.
A motorcyclist was killed shortly before 8 p.m. Saturday in Minnetonka when the operator, heading westbound on U.S. 12 from Carlson Parkway, struck a curb. Garrett Mathew Dawson, 58, of Becker, was pronounced dead at the scene. His passenger, a 58-year-old Buffalo woman, wasn’t seriously injured.
A motorcyclist was killed shortly after 6 p.m. Thursday in Winona County when he left northbound Minnesota 74 near Park Road and crashed. Ross Anthony Stensrud, 61, of Rochester, was pronounced dead at the scene.

All the fatal crashes remain under investigation by the State Patrol or local authorities.

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