Police in St. Paul say they’ve arrested a suspect in connection to a reported sexual assault and burglary in the city’s Macalester-Groveland neighborhood last week.

St. Paul Police Public Information Officer Alyssa Arcand announced during a news conference Thursday that Deonte Marquon Thomas, 35, had been arrested around 6:45 a.m. after investigators executed search warrants in Stillwater and Maplewood.

Thomas has been booked into Ramsey County Jail on suspicion of criminal sexual conduct, first-degree burglary and kidnapping. Charges are pending, and Arcand said they can be expected soon.

The arrest came 10 days after police said a woman reported being robbed and assaulted by a man who forced his way into her home.

By the time officers responded to her home in the 300 block of Snelling Avenue South at around 4:30 a.m., the suspect had fled but the department says it put on a “full-court press” to try to find him.

“I can tell you that we put every effort into this case,” Arcand said. “Our investigators and officers worked tirelessly to find the person responsible.”

“I want to start off by thanking the officers from all over the city who responded in the early morning hours when this occurred,” added St. Paul Police Chief Axel Henry at the press conference. “I want to thank all the investigators and the leadership in our department, who continued to tirelessly investigate this and never gave up on this case.”

Henry also thanked the tactical team who executed the search warrants and arrested Thomas.

He also added that over 730 people from the department worked on the case.

“It’s very important; it’s important to the people who have been victimized and traumatized by it in our community,” Henry said. “We want to send a message: We are here for you. We never gave up on this issue, and we are not going to give up. If you come and commit crimes in this city and in this way, we are going to find you and we are going to hold you accountable.”

Additionally, Deputy Chief Josh Lego shared that an officer, identified as Officer Zachary Schellinger, used technology to further explore the evidence to help identify a suspect. Lego said that the officer’s work helped expedite the case by a few weeks.

“It’s just such a sense of relief,” Sally Gardinier, who lives in the Macalester-Groveland neighborhood, said after learning of the suspect’s arrest.

“Things like this happen in other places, and suspects are never found,” she added. “It was just such a sense of relief that I had.”

She says because of the attack, she felt uncomfortable and scared for the first time in her neighborhood.

“I have a 113-pound German shepherd to protect me, but at the same time, you just don’t want to take a chance,” Gardinier said, telling 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS how grateful she is for the SPPD. “We are so lucky to have them. And just so happy to hear that the person was apprehended.”