Star Tribune
Participant in prolific Minneapolis smartphone theft ring sentenced to nearly 9 years
A nearly nine-year term has been given to a 22-year-old man for his role in the violent robbery of a patron outside a Minneapolis bar last summer, a crime that was part of a scheme by marauding thieves who stole more than 100 cellphones downtown and elsewhere in the city.
Jamarcus R. Tucker of St. Paul was sentenced Friday in Hennepin County District Court after pleading guilty to aiding and abetting aggravated robbery in connection with an attack around bar closing time on July 22.
With credit for time in jail since his arrest, Tucker is expected to serve slightly less than five years in prison and the balance on supervised release. Judge Kerry Meyer also imposed on Tucker a lifetime ban from owning a firearm. Also as part of his sentence, he was ordered to pay more than $6,500 in restitution.
Police say a group of six to eight strangers approached 25-year-old Jack Nadeau and his friend outside the Gay 90s nightclub. After Nadeau handed 19-year-old Kevron Detrell Williams Gray his phone, Gray slipped it to someone else in the group. When Nadeau asked for it back, Gray said he didn’t have it, according to charges and other court filings.
Surveillance video showed the two men arguing, and then another stepped in, pushed Nadeau and punched him, according to the charges. Nadeau fell unconscious to the sidewalk.
Nadeau’s cellphone apps were used in 20 fraudulent transactions totaling $1,760, including to purchase Nike shoes on Amazon, which were shipped to Gray’s address, according to the charges.
Gray, of St. Paul, was sentenced in October to a term of 9 ¾ years after pleading guilty to first-degree aggravated robbery for his role in the crime. With credit for time in jail since his arrest, Gray is expected to serve about 6 ¼ years in prison and the balance on supervised release.
Police said thieves spent 10 months targeting victims’ financial apps, according to charges and other court documents filed against some of the suspected perpetrators.
The plot begins often around bar close with a member of the group approaching someone and asking whether he can add his rap label’s account to the person’s Instagram, according to the documents.
If the target hands over the phone, the suspects steal it and make purchases on the phone’s apps or transfer the owner’s money into their own accounts. If the owner resists, a member of the group assaults the victim.
Charges of racketeering were filed against 12 people in September following an extensive joint investigation by the Minneapolis Police Department and the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension.
The thieves’ total take topped $275,000, according to prosecutors, and the stolen phones were sold to a Minneapolis man who shipped them to buyers overseas.
Zhongshuang Su, known as the “iPhone Man,” allegedly made 40 shipments of 1,135 phones to addresses in Hong Kong. Prosecutors put the value of those phones at more than $800,000. Resolution of the charges against Su are pending.
“[The most pressing issues] are everything from gentrification to community policing to climate change,” he told the Star Tribune. “MCAD’s role is: How do we begin addressing the most critical issues of our time? Frankly that’s got to be part of the work we do in educating the next generation of cultural leaders.”
MCAD’s Board Search Committee will begin a national search for the next president, working with executive search firm Isaacson, Miller, along with the MCAD community.
“We thank President Sethi for his dedication for the past five years, as he led the college through the challenges of COVID, acquired a new building for much-needed student housing, reimagined the campus of the future, and advocated for greater access to an art-and-design education,” said Board Co-Chairs Chris Barry and M.E. Kirwan in a joint statement.
Sethi is the 19th president in MCAD’s 139-year history, previously serving for four years as inaugural director of George Washington University’s Corcoran School of the Arts & Design, and previously holding leadership positions at Santa Fe Art Institute, Memphis College of Art and California College of the Arts.
The medical center is owned by a local nonprofit, but operated by Duluth-based Essentia under an affiliation agreement that dates back to 2009.
With the ruling announced Wednesday, Essentia Health says it will continue to operate the hospital, clinic, assisted-living and long-term care facilities in Fosston, plus clinics in Bagley and Oklee.
“Now that the arbitration process is over, Essentia is focused on the opportunity to engage our patients, colleagues and the community in building a shared vision for the future of health care in Fosston,” said Dr. Stefanie Gefroh, interim president of Essentia Health’s West Market, in a statement.
Arbitrators were asked to rule on whether Essentia eliminated a “core” service by discontinuing deliveries, since the city of Fosston would then have the right to terminate the affiliation agreement. But the panel in a 2-1 vote concluded that labor and delivery is just one aspect of obstetrics (OB).
“OB is a ‘core’ service under the agreement, encompassing labor and delivery as part of comprehensive care for pregnant women,” the ruling states. “Simply put, while the delivery of the baby is an essential component, it is not the sole care provided to a pregnant woman.”
Fosston officials, including the town’s mayor, were involved in the arbitration because the city has a legal connection to the nonprofit owner of the medical center, which historically was a municipal hospital.
Star Tribune
Judge gives driver year in jail for being drunk, fatally hitting man in Minnesota street
A driver was given a year in jail Wednesday for being drunk when he fatally hit a man in the street near St. Cloud.
Tyler J. Nies, 26, of Sartell, Minn., was sentenced in Benton County District Court after pleading guilty to criminal vehicular homicide in connection with the crash shortly before 11 p.m. on July 28 in Sauk Rapids near the intersection of N. Benton Drive and N. 8th Street that killed Kevin D. Oehmen, 47, of Sauk Rapids.
Judge Robert Raupp opted for the year in jail while setting aside a 5¾-year term. Raupp also ordered Nies to serve 10 years’ probation, perform 80 hours of community work service, complete a chemical assessment attend a victim impact panel, abstain from mood-altering chemicals and stay away from bars.
According to the criminal complaint:
An officer at the scene noticed that Nies smelled of alcohol. Nies initially said he had one beer before driving his pickup. A preliminary breath test by the officer measured Nies’ blood alcohol content at 0.129%, more than 1 1⁄2 times the legal limit in Minnesota.
Upon further questioning, Nies said that before driving he drank three beers, which were about 16 ounces each.
Nies told police he was heading north on Benton Drive in the right-hand lane and suddenly saw a man walking in the grassy area next to the curb “like he was going to cross the road,” the complaint read. Police Chief Perry Beise added that Oehmen was on a street with no marked crosswalk.
Minneapolis College of Art and Design President Sanjit Sethi to depart after six years
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Minneapolis College of Art and Design President Sanjit Sethi to depart after six years
Campbell Soup Company planning to drop “soup” from its name
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