Arrests made in armed robbery
WADENA COUNTY
Wadena County Sheriff Mike Carr reported Tuesday that three suspects are in custody and a fourth is being sought in connection with an armed robbery and burglary that occurred during the early morning hours of Oct. 9 at a rural residence in North Germany Township southeast of Sebeka.
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Sheriff's deputies and an investigator interviewed a male who reported on Oct. 14, that his North Germany home had been burglarized and that he was robbed at gunpoint by three males and a female. The man said that he and his 2-year-old daughter were awakened at 3:50 a.m. on Oct. 9 by two males who were pointing guns at them. The burglars rifled through dresser drawers and took $53 in cash, along with nine guns from a gun cabinet before they fled the residence in a vehicle.
William Romo
Deputies and the Menahga Police Department followed up a lead that same night on Oct. 14 in which a man reported that an armed assault had occurred at his Menahga apartment, also on Oct. 9. Three men came to the door of his apartment; as he opened the door they entered, and as he turned to get away, he was hit over the back of the head with a hard instrument of some sort. The three suspects proceeded to beat the victim, the Wadena County sheriff's office reported.
Bethany Kruse
Afterward, one suspect turned to another male in the apartment and punched him in the face.
As a result of the ensuing investigation, two search warrants were executed; one in Otter Tail County and one in the city of Willmar. As a result, two men and one woman were arrested and are in custody.
Arrested on Oct. 15 in New York Mills were William Gilbert Romo, 26, of New York Mills, and Bethany Lynn Kruse, 22, of Menahga. The third suspect, Andrew Thomas St. Michel, 24, was arrested by Hennepin County sheriff's deputies on Oct. 19.
Andrew St. Michel
The Wadena County Sheriff's Department and Willmar Police Department executed the second search warrant at a storage unit in Willmar and recovered two of the guns stolen from the residence in North Germany Township.
Authorities are actively seeking the fourth suspect, Zachary Scott Eide, 24. A warrant has been issued for his arrest.
Carr said all three of the males have an affiliation with the Aryan Brotherhood gang. He described the acts as "cowardly violence" and said he feels confident that Eide will be arrested soon. "This is a very serious crime and we will pursue this suspect until he is apprehended," Carr said in a news release.
Zachary Eide
The Wadena County Sheriff's Department was assisted in this investigation by the Menahga Police Department, Otter Tail County Sheriff's Department, New York Mills Police Department and the Willmar Police Department.
Charges have been filed by Wadena County Attorney Kyra Ladd's office.