RAMSEY COUNTY, MN — A 39-year-old St. Paul man is charged with a felony after police say he was caught on video throwing Lime scooters off the Wabasha Street bridge into the Mississippi River.
David John Kugler is charged in Ramsey County District Court with first-degree damage to property, according to a criminal complaint filed Monday.
Police were called around 4:39 p.m. on Oct. 1 to the area of Wabasha Street and Kellogg Boulevard in downtown St. Paul, where a man had been seen pushing a Lime scooter down the bridge, the complaint says.
Officers were already aware that in recent days, an unknown person had been pushing Lime scooters and throwing them off the bridge into the river, according to the complaint. As many as 100 scooters had been reported missing.
Police stopped the man at Wabasha and Kellogg and identified him as Kugler. While he was being detained, St. Paul police's Real Time Information Center reported it had video of Kugler throwing two Lime scooters off the west side of the bridge at about 4:32 p.m., the complaint states.
A Lime scooter is valued at $1,365, and the total loss exceeded $2,600, according to charging documents.
The investigation into Kugler's possible involvement in the loss of other scooters is continuing, the complaint says.
Ramsey County Judge Victoria Gardner ordered Kugler to remain in custody, with bail set at $10,000.
If convicted, Kugler faces up to five years in prison, a $10,000 fine, or both.
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