Officer Assaulted While Trying to Arrest Car Prowler
HERMANTOWN - Hermantown Police have a man in custody after an off duty police officer struggled with him as he tried to break into a car.
Shortly after six o'clock Monday night an off-duty Hermantown Police officer was at the Wal-Mart there and saw a man acting suspiciously inside a vehicle in the parking lot.
The officer was wearing police identifying clothing from working earlier and approached the suspect.
The officer identified himself as a Hermantown Police officer and based upon observations told the suspect he was being detained.
The officer was on the phone speaking with 911 and requesting a duty squad when the suspect began to struggle with the officer.
During the struggle the officer struck the ground and the suspect fled on foot.
Multiple agencies assisted in a coordinated search.
Hermantown Police were assisted by officers from the St. Louis County Sheriff's Dept, Proctor PD, Duluth PD, MN State Patrol, and Border Patrol.
The suspect, a 25 year old man with no known address, was caught in the parking lot of the Volkswagen dealership and taken into custody.
He is currently being held at the st. Louis county jail on charges of 4th degree assault, obstructing with force, and possession of stolen property.
During the investigation initiated during by the off-duty officer, two cell phones and charger accessories were recovered in the suspect car that had been stolen from Wal-Mart.
The arrested party had come to Wal-Mart with a group of 3 others, and during the investigation one was arrested for an outstanding warrant and one was cited for possession of a small amount of marijuana.
