5 juveniles in custody after armed carjacking in Roseville and pursuit into downtown St. Paul

Deanna Weniger, Pioneer Press, St. Paul, Minn.
·2 min read

Nov. 6—Five juveniles were taken into custody Thursday night following a Roseville carjacking and police pursuit into downtown St. Paul, according to the Ramsey County Sheriff's Office.

Around 10 p.m., a woman came out of Xperience Fitness club near 1650 County Road B2 in Roseville and was ambushed by two male teens who held a gun to her head and demanded the keys to her car. She complied and they drove off in her Jeep Grand Cherokee, the complaint states.

Approximately an hour later, a Ramsey County sheriff's deputy spotted the stolen Cherokee at Maryland Avenue and Arkwright Street in St. Paul's Payne-Phalen neighborhood.

The deputy followed the car to Rice and Sycamore streets. When the Cherokee ran a red light, the deputy attempted to stop it with lights and siren. The Cherokee sped up, heading south on Rice Street. The chase ended near the intersection of Fifth and Broadway streets near CHS Field in Lowertown, the complaint states.

All five teens — three males ages 13, 14 and 15, and two females, ages 13 and 14 — ran down Prince Street and hid in an alley just north of Kellogg Boulevard. They were apprehended with the help of St. Paul police, Ramsey County Sheriff Bob Fletcher said.

The teens were taken to the county juvenile detention center.

This was the second carjacking in Roseville in a week, and police are saying such robberies are getting more brazen, happening in daylight, in busy parking lots.

On Halloween, about 5:30 p.m. in the Goodwill parking lot on County Road B, a woman was approached by a gunman who demanded the keys to her car.

"The suspect actually struck her in the head with the firearm, leaving a large cut and contusion," said Roseville Deputy Police Chief Joe Adams. The woman's Subaru Outback was later recovered in St. Paul.

Police are cautioning residents to practice situational awareness, even when the area seems safe.

"Things that do help us, is if someone is able to provide unique descriptions of the suspect, such as their shoes, or a specific emblem on their hat," Adams said. "That will help us identify these people in the long run."

Adams said police have strong leads in the Halloween carjacking, but no arrests have been made.

He added that it is safer for victims to comply, especially if a suspect is pointing a gun at them.

"Obviously, the individuals involved in these crimes throughout the metro have proven that they are dangerous," he said. "No personal property is worth your life."