Parent pulls child from vehicle during St. Paul carjacking; 3 suspects arrested

Authorities say three people have been arrested in connection to an armed carjacking during which the victim pulled their child from the vehicle before the suspects stole it.

The Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office says deputies in the Carjacking and Auto Theft (CAT) Unit were notified of a carjacking in St. Paul near the 700 block of Osceola Avenue at about 9:30 a.m. Tuesday.

During the carjacking, the victim was blocked in by three armed suspects and had to pull their child from the vehicle before the suspects stole the vehicle and drove off.

The Saint Paul Department is also part of the investigation and says the victim had been shopping on Grand Avenue, near her home, when she noticed a car full of people with ski masks on — she told police something didn’t feel right about it, so she went home.

Police say it was that car that followed the victim home.

"It was an incredibly scary situation for a member of our community," Steven Linders, with the SPPD, said.

"In St. Paul, we’ve had more than 100 carjackings this year, which is an astronomical number for us," Linders told 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS "It’s on the increase, especially recently, so our officers are hyper vigilant."
For perspective, St. Paul had 73 carjackings during 2020.

While searching for the stolen vehicle Tuesday, deputies identified the suspect vehicle as one connected to a robbery in Minneapolis. Deputies were able to locate the carjacked vehicle near the Ramsey County-Hennepin County border, near Huron Boulevard Southeast and Delaware Street Southeast.

When they found it, a 17-year-old male suspect ran away but was taken into custody near Huntington Bank Stadium with the help of the University of Minnesota and Minneapolis police. The sheriff’s office says the 17-year-old has a criminal history that includes aggravated robbery and weapons arrests.

According to the sheriff’s office, as authorities chased the teen, another armed robbery occurred. The suspects in that robbery matched the descriptions of the carjacking suspects, and the suspect vehicle matched the description of the carjacked vehicle.

Deputies and St. Paul police worked together and learned that one of the vehicles was in north Minneapolis at about 1:30 p.m.

Deputies from Ramsey and Hennepin counties, along with Minneapolis police, found the vehicle and arrested two other suspects who fled — one juvenile and one adult. Authorities say both suspects were wanted in connection to another carjacking in Minneapolis, and both had criminal histories involving auto thefts and carjackings.

"It was great teamwork among different agencies," Linders said. "We had our officers, obviously we had their partners with Ramsey County, we had Minneapolis PD, and we’re all working together," he added.

No injuries were reported.