St. Paul Residential Armed Robbery

The St. Paul Police Department has issued a Media Advisory following a residential armed robbery on August 18th, 2006 on St. Paul's West Side:

MEDIA ADVISORY

Saint Paul Police Department
367 Grove Street
Saint Paul, MN 55101

Tom Walsh
Public Information Coordinator
651-266-5735 - Office
651-755-9990 - Cellular

August 18, 2006

Masked Man Robs Home

At about 12:A.M. this morning an armed man wearing a mask entered a home Chippewa Ave. on St. Paul’s West Side. The man, Armed with a small silver hand gun demanded money and jewelry. The suspect obtained a small amount of cash and some jewelry and left the occupants of the house, a woman and her teenaged daughter, in the basement.

The suspect is described as a male, in his early 20s, about 5’10”with short reddish brown hair wearing a white hooded sweatshirt and a mask over the entire lower half of his face. He spoke with what was described as a southern drawl.

No force was used to gain entry to the home and no one was injured. It appears that a door was left unsecured and that was the point of entry. It is unclear at this time, if this home was targeted or, simply an opportunity.

St.Paul Police ask people, in all parts of the city, to take basic precautions against this kind of intrusion.

The most basic precaution was ignored in this case - locking the doors.

Too many people get careless about security and invite crime. Leaving garage doors open over night is a crime magnet, but people do it all the time. Unlocked doors and windows are less obvious, but no less hazardous.

It's important to at least give the impression your home is secure, but using multiple layers of security is the best defense.

The victim in the above case appears to have paid the price for not being diligent about safety and security. She and her daughter were lucky they weren't hurt.