Oakdale Police Blotter: Home Burglarized, Suspicious Men Might Be Connected

A home in the 1300 block of Gentry Avenue was burglarized on Oct. 26 while its residents were at work, according to an Oakdale Police Department report.

A resident's family member discovered and reported the break-in, the report says. Someone forced entry into the home through a main floor window, and a 50-inch television, Sony Playstation 3, a gun and gold men’s watch with a total value of more than $1,000 were stolen, the report says.

At 10:15 p.m., about 10 minutes before the burglary was reported, someone reported that two men were carrying a large television near a dumpster in a parking lot in the 6200 block of 12^th Street, and one of them asked him if he wanted to buy it, an Oakdale Police Department report says. Police were unable to locate the men or the television, according to the report.

The incident was possibly connected to the burglary, the report says.

The following incidents were also reported to Oakdale police Oct. 26 to 30:

Oct. 26:

• Someone smashed out the rear, passenger-side window of a van parked at between 2:40 and 2:45 p.m. and stole a laptop computer and a purse containing a financial card, cash and identification cards. The total value of the items stolen is $2,300 and the property damage estimate is $1,000.

Oct 28:

• A 24-year-old Oakdale woman was taken to the hospital for smoke inhalation following an apartment fire in the 5600 block of Hadley Avenue around 8 p.m. The fire was started by an unattended candle on a living room table, and was extinguished by the caller, a neighbor, before the fire department arrived. The woman appeared to be intoxicated.
• Sometime between May and June, a man came to the former Kelly’s Tobacco claiming to work for Xcel Energy and convinced the owner to give him money to turn the power on at the store. The owner gave him a total of $1,600 after seven visits, and the power was only turned on permanently once.
• A 48-year-old St. Paul woman was cited and arrested on warrants after concealing $129 worth of clothing at and trying to leave the store without paying for it.
• A laptop computer worth $700 was stolen from the kitchen table at a home in the 600 block of Goodview Avenue between 7:30 a.m. and 10:30 p.m. Oct. 27.  Many friends and family frequent the unlocked residence and were home throughout the day.
• A 20-year-old Oakdale man was arrested for allegedly punching his girlfriend in the face and taking a phone from a female witness when she tried to call 911. The incident occurred in the 4100 block of Gershwin Avenue.

Oct. 29:

• Someone entered an unlocked apartment in the 4100 block of Gershwin Avenue between 3:30 and 9:45 p.m. and stole a $900 40-inch television and $400 tower computer. Entry was made through an unlocked patio door.
• A 25-year-old woman reported finding a man in a maintenance closet in an apartment building in the 4100 block of Geneva Avenue. She had left the closet unlocked while she was cleaning the building between 1:15 and 1:30 p.m. When she opened the door, she saw a man in is 40s standing in the closet holding what appeared to be a metal handle to a 5 gallon bucket. The man said he had been visiting his girlfriend in the building and thought the closet was the bathroom. He left without incident. It’s unknown whether anything is missing from the closet.
• A resident in the 6400 block of 55^th Street reported that unknown parties broke out a window on his trailer, causing $100 damage.

Oct. 30:

• A 33-year-old St. Paul man allegedly hit a parked car in the 1300 block of Gentry Avenue and drove off following an argument with his girlfriend. Police found the man had a revoked driver’s license. The property damage estimate is $200.
• The Oakdale Fire Department extinguished a garage fire in the 7400 block of 46^th Street after getting a call from a passerby reporting black smoke coming from the garage. When the homeowner returned, he said he had grilled the night before, and put the ashes into his garbage can in his garage. The garbage can was melted, and the fire had climbed the inner wall between the garage and residence.
• Police responded to the football field on a complaint that the coaches of a Woodbury seventh grade team were yelling at the referees claiming they were not calling penalties because they are racist. A referee also said the coaches were belligerent. Woodbury’s head coach said he did not call the referees any names, but did say the referees were not calling penalties both ways because the refs “don’t like them.” Police remained on scene until the Woodbury team left the area.

The above items are taken from the . In all incidents where an arrest occurred, a charge is merely an accusation, and not evidence of guilt. The arrested person is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Incidents are listed in the order in which they were reported, not necessarily the order in which they occurred.