Verizon Robbery: 1 Charged In Dakota County, 2nd Suspect 'At Large'

DAKOTA COUNTY, MN — Dakota County Attorney James Backstrom announced Monday that Jamaal Marquie Mays, age 32, of Crystal, has been charged with aggravated robbery and two firearm violations (ineligible and altered/removed serial number) in connection with an armed robbery at a Verizon Wireless store on Aug. 17, in Inver Grove Heights. The other suspect in the armed robbery remains at large, according to police.

A summary of the allegations in the complaint against Mays includes:

Around 11:00 a.m. Inver Grove Heights police officers responded to a cellular phone store
where an exchange of gunfire was reported. When officers arrive at the scene, an employee of the store reported that he had a permit to carry and had shot one of the robbery suspects in self-defense.

The clerk went into the back room of the store to get a phone requested by the suspects. Upon exiting the backroom, one of the suspects pointed a gun at the clerk’s head. Believing the defendant was going to shoot him, the clerk pulled his own gun (for which he had a permit to carry) and fired several shots.

The defendant suffered two gunshot wounds. The other suspect fled the scene before police arrived. Aid was rendered by paramedics at the scene and the defendant was transported to Regions Hospital for medical care. The gun used in the robbery and the gun belonging to the clerk were both recovered at the scene.

Note: Criminal charges and allegations are not evidence of guilt. A defendant/suspect is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

The defendant remains hospitalized, but is expected to survive, according to a news release. His release date from the hospital is unknown, so a first appearance date has not been set.

Anyone with information pertaining to his identity and location should contact the Inver Grove Heights Police Department at (651) 450-2525 or call 911.

There were no other individuals inside the Verizon Wireless store at the time of this incident. According to police, during the gunfire, which included, shots fired by the defendant, an employee of a neighboring business did receive a "graze" wound as a result of one of the bullets going through an adjoining wall. No other individuals in adjoining businesses were struck by the gunfire.

Backstrom commented: "This was a very frightening experience for the store clerk and others in adjoining
businesses. We are thankful that neither the store clerk nor any other individuals were seriously injured as a result of this armed robbery."

Backstrom thanked the Inver Grove Heights Police Department for their investigation of this case. Backstrom also thanked the South St. Paul Police Department, St. Paul Police Department K-9 Unit, the Minnesota State Patrol, the Dakota County Sheriff’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms for their assistance with this case.

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