ROSEVILLE POLICE DEPARTMENT Bullet hole in a vehicle from a drive by shooting on Hwy 36 (see next page for details) July - 2018 Monthly summary On the following pages we highlight a few of the more notable cases along with statistical information. We also will highlight various ways we are connecting with the community and how volunteers play a role in policing. If there is anything you have questions on please feel free to contact us for more information.
1. PATROL INCIDENT SUMMARIES Drive By Shooting Date: 07-02-2018 Time: 0217 Location: Hamline Ave & Hwy 36 CN: 18021347 Sgt. Pitzl and Officer Chang were on routine patrol in the parking lot at Cedarholm Golf Course when they heard 7 to 8 gunshots in succession coming from the highway and getting closer to their location. At this same time, Officer Gray advised he was in the area of Hwy 36 and Victoria and heard gunshots west of him. Sgt. Pitzl entered Hwy 36 westbound looking for any vehicle that may have been involved in a shooting; he could see three vehicles ahead of him. As he caught up to them, he was able to see one of the vehicles accelerated slightly, he caught up to the vehicle as it exited at University Ave / 4 th Street. While on the ramp he used his spotlight to illuminate the driver s side of the vehicle and noticed the driver s window was shattered, there was at least one bullet hole and there was smoke coming from the front end. The vehicle stopped and Sgt. Pitzl requested other squads respond to perform a felony stop of the vehicle. While waiting the driver began exiting the car as he was instructed to stay inside the vehicle with his hands visible. The driver then stated he was going to call his father. Squads arrived and they were able to take the driver out of the vehicle safely. Officers noticed a smell of marijuana coming from the vehicle. Sgt. Pitzl recognized the driver as a Roseville Area High School student he knew when he worked as the School Liaison Officer in the past. Officers observed 4 to 5 bullet holes along the driver s side and hood of the vehicle. Sgt. Pitzl showed the driver the bullet holes in his vehicle and the driver claimed he was just driving around listening to music when a vehicle pulled up next to his and his window suddenly shattered. He said his music was so loud he did not hear any gunshots. He said he did not know why anyone would want to kill him. The driver then began to cry and acknowledged that he was fortunate to be alive. Inside the vehicle officers located two baggies and a glass jar containing marijuana. When the driver opened his wallet briefly, Sgt. Pitzl observed he was carrying several hundred dollars in large bills. Sgt. Pitzl called the driver several hours after the incident and was told by his mother that he was not home but she would have him call back. The driver never returned the call. One adult male from St. Paul was released from the scene. On 7/30/18 Officer Weber made a traffic stop of this same vehicle and Sgt. Pitzl responded to the scene. He asked the driver why he had not returned his call and he stated, Because I m not a snitch. He acknowledged he knew who had shot at him but he did not wish to cooperate with police. Page 1
Traffic Stop Date: 07-03-2018 Time: 0102 Location: Snelling Avenue CN: 18021459 Officer Gray was on routine patrol in the area of Snelling and Lydia when a vehicle passed by south bound on Snelling traveling at approximately 90MPH. He began following the vehicle to make a stop but was not able to gain any distance. He maintained a visual of the vehicle as it traveled between 90-100MPH weaving in and out of the light traffic. He alerted dispatch to what was happening. The vehicle began slowing near Snelling and Como as he caught up to the vehicle. The vehicle came to a complete stop in the left lane and the driver exited with her hands in the air. She stated her son was in the vehicle and had been shot in the neck and another passenger in the vehicle had also been shot. There were four passengers in the vehicle and Officer Gray quickly determined one had a gunshot wound to the neck and one had a gunshot wound in the back. He requested medics to the scene. The driver stated the victims had been shot at a bar in South Minneapolis where several shots were fired and they had fled the scene. The occupants of the vehicle were not very cooperative with details of what had occurred. After the victims and others had been transported to the hospital, officers search the vehicle and located multiple bullet holes and a spent shell casing from a 9mm round. Officers made contact with Minneapolis officers and learned the shooting occurred in the Seven Corners area of Minneapolis and they requested the vehicle be towed for investigation. One adult male and one juvenile male from St. Paul were transported via ambulance to the hospital for treatment. One adult female from St. Paul was transported home. One adult female from St. Paul and one juvenile male from Forest Lake were transported by squad to the hospital. Burglary Date: 07-10-2018 Time: 0220 Location: 2100 Block of Cohansey Blvd. CN: 18022214 Officers were dispatched to a burglary, which had just occurred, and suspects were seen fleeing in two vehicles. Officer Wiesner spoke with the victim who stated the residence is a group home, she is the employee, and there are two clients who were asleep. She stated she was in the living room on her phone when she heard noise in the office, which is locked due to meds and other valuables being stored in there. She stayed in the living room and then heard the office door open and saw a suspect walk down the hallway towards her. The briefly made contact and she got up and ran towards the door as the suspect ran back towards the office and exited through the window. She told Officer Wiesner she thought she saw a total of four suspects leave in two vehicles. She noticed a laptop was missing from the desk and her purse had been rummaged through and her wallet was missing with all her credit cards and ID. Officers observed the screen for the window was on the ground and it appears that is how the suspect(s) gained access to the home. Robbery Date: 07-11-2018 Time: 1955 Location: Macy s; 1595 Hwy 36 CN: 18022424 Officers were dispatched to an assault and the call comments stated a male suspect had physically fought with security officers and then the male took a female s purse. Officers then received information the suspect had fled in a vehicle. State Patrol dispatch advised they had a suspect vehicle on their cameras heading south on Snelling. Officers Dickens & Eckert caught up with this vehicle and performed a traffic stop. The back seat passenger was taken into custody as he matched the description of the male suspect. Meanwhile Officer Ehnstrom responded to the mall and spoke with the Loss Prevention Officer who informed him of the suspect description and stated he had stolen $852 in merchandise along with a female suspect who stole $150 worth of merchandise. She stated she approached the individuals after they exited and identified herself as loss prevention. She stated the male would not return to the store as requested. She grabbed the stolen merchandise out of the suspect s hands and he pushed her against the Page 2
wall and attempted to pull the items back while pinning her against the wall. He also threw her onto the floor causing minor injuries. Ultimately, Loss Prevention recovered the stolen merchandise from the suspects before they fled the scene. The front seat passenger was identified as the female suspect in the theft. Officers transported the suspects back to the mall where they were positively identified by the Loss Prevention Officer. The suspect male originally gave a false name but was eventually identified. He admitted to using his brother s name because he knew he had a warrant out for his arrest. He admitted to the theft but denied fighting with the Loss Prevention Officer. One adult male from St. Paul was arrested for Simple Robbery and False Information to police along with an outstanding warrant. One homeless adult female was arrested for shoplifting. Narcotics / Recovered Stolen Vehicle Date: 07-15-2018 Time: 1957 Location: Walmart; 1960 Twin Lakes Pkwy CN: 18022878 Officer Johnson was working off Duty at Walmart when Loss Prevention alerted him to a suspect male who was concealing items in his pants. Officer Johnson requested Officer Christensen for back up as he was going to stop the suspect as he exited the business. While handcuffing the suspect Officers observed needle marks in his arm. The suspect admitted to recently using narcotics. Officers located the stolen items valued at $178, a wallet containing ID and credit cards belonging to someone else, and a set of car keys. He stated he had found the wallet and that he did not have a car in the parking lot. Officer Christensen was able to locate the vehicle using the keys. He observed needles and drug paraphernalia in plain view. He then discovered the vehicle was stolen. Officer Johnson learned the suspect had a felony warrant for 5 th degree possession of drugs out of Anoka County. Officer Christensen observed a man walking aimlessly around the parking lot. This male matched the description of another male who had been seen with the suspect in the store. Officer Christensen approached him and the man admitted to being with the suspect. This man stated he has known the suspect for about a month and the suspect has had that vehicle the whole time. He did not know the vehicle was stolen. He said he hangs out with the suspect when he needs drugs. He admitted he had been in the vehicle with the suspect. He stated they were previously at the Holiday gas station where the suspect stole gas and then changed license plates on the vehicle. He also stated the suspect s girlfriend had been with them and should still be in the area. Shortly after, Officer Christensen observed a female wandering in the parking lot who matched the description of the girlfriend. The second male suspect confirmed this female was with them in the stolen vehicle. Officer Christensen approached her and the female originally denied being with the suspects in the vehicle but ultimately admitted to it. She also gave him a false name. Using public social media profiles Officer Christensen was able to identify the female and Page 3
confirm she had two felony warrants for her arrest. He also located a syringe and makeshift tinfoil pipe in her purse along with stolen items concealed in her shirt. One adult male from New Brighton was arrested for Possession of Stolen Vehicle and Felony Warrant. One adult male from Cottage Grove was cited for Possession of Hypodermic Syringes and released. One adult female from Coon Rapids was arrested for Felony Warrants, GM False Info to Police, Possession of Hypodermic Syringe and Possession of Stolen Property. Suicide in Progress Date: 07-17-2018 Time: 1140 Location: Restricted CN: 18023100 Officers Martin and Nelson were dispatched to a home on a possible suicidal female. The complainant told dispatch she had received an email from the victim indicating she could not go on living. The front door was open but the screen door was locked. There was a bag of dog food and a note with vet information next to the door. They could see three dogs inside in kennels. They knocked repeatedly and identified themselves but received no response. Officers forced the screen door open and cleared the main level of the home finding nothing out of the ordinary. Upstairs officers located a female on the floor of the small shower stall with a large amount of blood surrounding her. There were visible cuts on her arm and neck and officers could see a box cutter was in her right hand. The victim had very shallow breathing. Officers called for medics. Officer Martin told the victim to put the knife down and she responded that they should let her die as she lifted the knife and proceeded to stab/cut herself. She also threatened to cut officers if they came near her. Sgt. Steinberg and medics arrived on scene. Sgt. Steinberg and Officers Nelson and Martin continued to plead with the woman to put the knife down but she refused. Officers used a rolled up blanket and an ottoman to safely pin the woman s arms down to get the knife from her. Medics were then cleared in and provided medical treatment and transported her to the hospital. 2. INVESTIGATIONS Search Warrants: 7/3/18: Detective Kim authored a search warrant for TCF bank records reference a fraud case 7/12/18: Narcotics Detective authored a search warrant for a cell phone reference a narcotics case. 7/12/18: Lieutenant Williams authored several search warrants and an electronic location tracking device reference a missing person case. 7/17/18: Narcotics Detective authored and executed search warrants for two DNA samples, a hotel room, and a cell phone reference a large scale narcotics case. Page 4
3. STATISTICS This chart represents the adult arrests and their reported addresses for felony, gross misdemeanor, and misdemeanor crimes this month. *Ramsey and Hennepin County statistics do not include St. Paul and Minneapolis arrests. This table represents the cases each member of the Detectives Unit was assigned during the month. This table shows selected calls for service the Roseville Police Department responded to during the month. It is not inclusive of all calls for service. July 2018 Calls for Service Crime Type # of Calls Alarms 119 Assault 6 Burglary 22 Community Outreach 392 Criminal Damage to Property 33 Criminal Sexual Conduct 4 Domestic 15 DWI 3 Execution of a Search Warrant 11 Fights 3 Medical Assist 272 Proactive Police Visits 577 Robbery 4 Suspicious Activity 126 Traffic Accidents 107 Traffic Stop 544 Calls for Service in Month 3811 Page 5
4. COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT Chief Rick Mathwig and Corey Yunke attended the Roseville Police Foundation Meeting. 12 years ago on July 24, Sgt. Pitzl responded to a call for Medical Assist and helped deliver a baby girl. Sgt. Pitzl was flagged down by her family and posed for a picture with Anna. Get to Know Your Roseville Police: Officer Eckert and his K9 Partner Ragnar, and School Resource Officer Jones presented during this edition of the ongoing presentation series Get to Know Your Roseville Police. Lt. Adams, Sgt. Pitzl, Officer Weber, and Corey Yunke helped with the presentation. Thank you Parks and Recreation for letting us use the Skating Center Banquet Rooms. 5. VOLUNTEERS Roseville Police Department utilizes the assistance of volunteers in our everyday course of work. The Reserve Unit are uniformed civilians who drive a marked squad and assist officers by directing traffic when needed, transporting prisoners, etc. The Roseville Police Citizen Park Patrol enlists the help of several residents to patrol our parks daily helping to deter crime and pass out information to park visitors. We also have a steady stream of student interns who are helping us out by running errands for investigations, assisting with paperwork for administration, analyzing statistical data and so much more. 2017 value of volunteer time in MN is $26.40 per hour. That is a value of $8,184 this month alone! Reserves and Park Patrol are actual hours. Interns is an estimate of hours. Page 6
6. TRAINING The Roseville Police Department strives to have the highest trained officers and staff possible. Each month our Officers and Staff attend countless hours of training on a variety of subjects. Training attended this month: Decision Making: Foundation of Reasonable Force Dynamics of Officer / Citizen Encounters Tactics in Traffic Basic Photography for the DSLR Camera Taser Instructor Certification Humanizing Your Agency Through Social Media Page 7