May 2014 Safety Report

Fulton Safety committee report:  May, 2014

(Submitted by Dave Delvoye)

Fulton neighborhood crime reports

April 11  At 11:07 a.m., the U.S. Marshals North Star Fugitive Task Force, including staff from the Minneapolis Police department, was at 5137 Abbott Ave South in search of a male suspect with a felony warrant.  Officers observed the suspect outside the house for a brief moment, then watched the suspect walk back into the house.  Officers executed a search warrant and entered the house and arrested 37-year-old Jeremy Daniel Gonser of Coon Rapids for two felony warrants out of Minneapolis for 5^th degree possession of drugs and a gross misdemeanor warrant out of St Anthony for theft. 

Inside the house, officers’ eyes began to itch and burn and a strong chemical odor was in the air.  It was suspected that a “lab” was set up in the basement to manufacture methamphetamine.  The suspect, another male, and two females were removed from the house and detained, along with additional male who was in the back yard when officers approached the house.  The Fire department HAZMAT unit and the Police department BOMB/HAZMAT unit responded to the scene.  Personnel from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administation (DEA) also responded to the scene.  An initial assessment of the scene indicated that there was, in fact, a suspected meth lab in the basement. 

One of the females, 27-year-old Starlet Mae Johnson who gave an address of 4412 4^th Ave South on the police report but indicated that she was homeless when booked into the jail, was arrested for a felony warrant out of Minneapolis for receiving stolen property, a misdemeanor warrant out of Minneapolis for violating a domestic order for protection, and a felony warrant out of Anoka County.  Gonser and Johnson were booked in the jail for the warrants.  The other female and two males, none of whom listed 5137 Abbott Ave as their address, were identified and released.  A DEA Task Force officer applied for and obtained a search warrant for the house and for a vehicle which was parked in front. 

Police subsequently issued a notice stating that a chemical hazard was found inside the house; that the hazard is isolated to that house; and that this is an ongoing investigation but that the public is not in any danger.  Contact Public Information Officer John Elder at (612) 578-4322 or john.elder@minneapolismn.gov for further concerns or information.

Jeremy Daniel Gonser has prior convictions in Minnesota for theft (2), disorderly conduct, and 5^th degree felony possession of drugs.  Starlet Mae Johnson, who has been arrested in Minneapolis 5 other times in the past year for violating an order for protection (2), violating a domestic no contact order, theft, and motor vehicle theft, has prior convictions in Anoka and Cass Counties for theft and receiving stolen property.

On April 23, Jeremy Daniel Gonser pled guilty to 5^th degree felony drug possession from January 1, 2013.  (One of the felony warrants was for this case.  The other felony drug case and the gross misdemeanor theft case were dismissed.)  Judge Tanya Bransford sentenced Gonser to 19 months in prison, stayed for three years, serve 159 days, with credit for 159 days served.  Condtions of release include: supervised probation; no use of alcohol or controlled substances; chemical dependency evaluation/treatment; remain law-abiding; stay away from 4502 Aldrich Ave South, 5137 Abbott Ave South, and 5604 Stevens Ave.

April 15  Between 7:15 a.m. and 5:45 p.m., an unknown suspect broke into a home on the 4900 block of Zenith and took unlisted items.

May 8  Between 8:30 a.m. and 4:20 p.m., a burglary of dwelling was reported at a home on the 4800 block of Upton.