Minnetonka man charged with burglary and identity theft

A 56-year-old Minnetonka man was arrested on March 14 along with an alleged accomplice and has been charged in Hennepin County District Court with one count each of third-degree burglary and identity theft in connection with incidents beginning in May 2023.

According to the criminal complaint:

On May 24, 2023, an employee of HealthPartners Park Nicollet Clinic at 8455 Flying Cloud Drive in Eden Prairie reported that her credit cards had been used without her permission. She looked in her purse and found that her wallet was missing.

Clinic surveillance obtained by Eden Prairie Police showed a man, later identified as the defendant, in the clinic at the time the wallet was stolen. The defendant was seen in non-public areas of the clinic. The defendant is not an employee of the clinic or HealthPartners Park Nicollet.

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Police also obtained surveillance video from a Target store in Crystal that showed an accomplice of the defendant using the victim’s financial transaction cards to attempt to purchase merchandise. The accomplice successfully bought two gift cards and another item with the stolen cards. The total attempted loss was $2,404.72, and the actual loss was $359.14. 

Police learned of another theft at a Shakopee school on Sept. 26, 2023. A victim reported that her wallet, which was left beside her desk, had been stolen; it contained credit cards used without her authorization. Surveillance footage captured the defendant entering her classroom at 1:26 p.m. He had no reason to be there.

The Shakopee victim’s cards were used at a Target store, Sam’s Club, and GameStop in Shakopee. An accomplice was captured on video using the cards. Additionally, one card was used at Kohl’s locations in St. Louis Park and Burnsville, where both the defendant and the accomplice were seen on video.

The accomplice cashed a check belonging to another victim at a South Metro Federal Credit Union in Shakopee. The accomplice then withdrew $1,700 from the account of the victim, whose wallet was stolen at the Shakopee school. The combined loss from these actions, both attempted and realized, exceeds $3,000.

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Eden Prairie Police also reviewed reports showing the defendant on video stealing wallets from a Park Nicollet clinic in Chanhassen on June 6 and July 12, 2023.

Police learned that the defendant and his accomplice live together in Minnetonka. The two have been involved in similar conduct throughout the Twin Cities metro area. They were arrested in a Richfield hotel room on March 14, 2024.

The defendant, who was initially in Eden Prairie custody, now has a nationwide warrant issued for his arrest.

If convicted on the burglary account, the defendant faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison and/or a $10,000 fine. If convicted of the identity theft charge, he faces a maximum sentence of 10 years and/or a $20,000 fine.