Author: Jim Bayer

The Eden Prairie Police Department (EPPD) has filed charging documents against one person they believe is responsible for the string of burglaries, attempted burglaries, and car break-ins in the Settler’s Ridge neighborhood in the early morning hours of May 31, according to a police spokeswoman. “We are waiting for the (Hennepin County) attorney’s office to make a decision on the charges,” she told EPLN via email Thursday, June 16. Eden Prairie officers responded to eight residential burglaries, attempted burglaries, auto tampering and suspicious incidents in the area of Frontier Place, Acorn Ridge, Overland Trail and Cedarcrest Drive the morning of…

The following criminal charges have been filed by the Hennepin County District Attorney in the Fourth Judicial District. Theft Matthew Richard Kroiss, 33, of Shoreview, is charged with felony theft of property valued at more than $1,000 and less than $5,000 in a May 23 incident at Scheels in the Eden Prairie Center. According to the police complaint: Eden Prairie police responded to a theft report at Scheels, 8301 Flying Cloud Drive. Upon arrival, officers spoke with the store’s loss prevention staff. They reported that a man walked into the store and picked seven Ping i525 golf clubs valued at…

When Debra Mikol woke up the morning of May 31 and saw the contents of her purse spread across a table in her family’s sunroom, she thought that one of her three teenage children might have been looking for some spending money. It turns out Mikol’s home in the Settler’s Ridge neighborhood in southwest Eden Prairie was one of several homes in the vicinity burglarized in the early morning hours the day after Memorial Day. Police: Suspect identified, charges expected According to a June 8 Eden Prairie Police Department (EPPD) statement, the department, working with several Twin Cities police departments,…

The following criminal charges have been filed by the Hennepin County District Attorney in the Fourth Judicial District. Criminal sexual conduct Uwemedimo Wilson Udia, 40, of Brooklyn Park, is charged with one count of third-degree criminal sexual conduct, and one count of domestic assault by strangulation, in an April 23 incident in Eden Prairie. According to the police complaint: Eden Prairie police responded to a report of a domestic assault at the Residence Inn, 7780 Flying Cloud Drive. They met the victim and her daughter and observed numerous scratches, abrasions, and bruising on the victim’s face and neck. She told…

“Paper or plastic?” What is your answer when you are asked this question at your local grocery store? If you answered “paper,” Eleanor Finne would be satisfied. If you said neither and handed the bagger a reusable cloth bag, she’d be even happier. Eleanor, a junior at Eden Prairie High School, cares more about plastic bag pollution than most her age. So much so that last August, she decided to tackle the problem of prolific amounts of plastic bags in our world by creating a project to earn the prestigious Girls Scout Gold Award. Working with her project advisor, Cheryl…

When three Eden Prairie High School (EPHS) seniors approached music teacher Jill Boyd in 2011 with an idea to have a dinner and dance for their friends with special needs, they couldn’t have known that the event would still be going strong more than a decade later. As it turns out, their idea gave birth to a tradition that students can’t wait to be a part of each year. The 11th annual Insights Celebration was held Saturday, April 23, at EPHS. “Since (the first event), kids have knocked on my office door almost immediately after the dance asking to be on…

The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office has filed felony criminal complaints in recent weeks against 14 people charged in separate Eden Prairie incidents. Charges include child neglect, illegal weapon possession, theft, fleeing police, and violating a no-contact order. Child neglect Emilia Johnson Ramirez, 28, of Eden Prairie, is charged with child neglect and causing physical and emotional harm to a child following a daycare provider’s report of unexplained bruises on a child stemming from a Dec. 2021 incident in Eden Prairie. According to the complaint: Child protection workers met with Ramirez on Dec. 2, 2021, where they located three children, including…

Eden Prairie’s police department has quietly expanded its use of technology to catch car thieves by using portable automated license plate recognition (ALPR) devices in various locations across the city. The Eden Prairie Police Department (EPPD) has used non-portable license plate readers (LPRs) on four squad cars since 2017, according to EPPD Lt. Jess Irmiter. But the department purchased 13 ALPRs in late 2021 thanks to a $20,000 grant from the State of Minnesota’s Auto Theft Prevention Program. The ALPRs have been deployed in “high-traffic commercial locations” throughout the city, Irmiter said. Irmiter declined to provide EPLN with a list…

Eden Prairie Schools (EPS) operates a fleet of 104 buses and vans that transports more than 8,000 students to school, sporting events and field trips every day. All of those buses are diesel-powered. They are among about 500,000 similar buses transporting 25 million children to and from school each day all across the country. They have been the workhorse in the school bus world for decades. School buses travel about four billion miles each year, providing the safest transportation to and from school for more than 25 million American children every day, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).…

Most people get chills just thinking about speaking in front of a group of people. At Eden Prairie High School (EPHS), there is an entire team devoted to doing just that – the speech team. While speech may not enjoy the visibility of other high school sports, the time commitment, preparation, dedication and teamwork are no different. And it’s not a small team; membership is not guaranteed. More than 100 students tried out for 65 spots available on this year’s team. Cuts had to be made to permit an acceptable player-to-coach ratio. The team is coached by Jason Meyer and…