Rising crime comes to the suburbs

One aspect of the rise in violent crime in the Twin Cities has been the increase in carjackings. On November 5, Kare 11 reported that Minneapolis has seen 457 carjackings this year — that’s up 319 percent from 104 in 2019. In St. Paul, there have been 80 carjackings so far in this year.

But this rise in violent crime, if unchecked, will not restrict itself to the urban core of the Twin Cities. If not tackled, it will spread. There are signs that this is already happening.

Yesterday, KSTP reported that between 8:15 p.m. and 9 p.m. on Monday night:

A Blue Jaguar sedan was taken from Target West by people armed with handguns. In an update later Tuesday, police said the sedan was recovered by the Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office, with help from the Minnesota State Patrol and Minneapolis police.

Then, a Honda Accord was taken from a business near Eagle Creek Lane. Police said later Tuesday that this vehicle has not yet been recovered.

Police said the suspects in those two incidents arrived in a 2014 gray Honda Pilot and a black BMW X1.

After that, police said armed suspects robbed a person at a Chick-Fil-A near Valley Creek Road and Woodlane Drive.

Police said the victims of the Woodbury incidents were not physically hurt.

Woodbury wasn’t the only city unaffected on Monday: KSTP reports that police also reported an attempted armed robbery at the Hy-Vee off North 10th Street in Oakdale.

WCCO reported:

Bev Berchem lives in Oakdale and frequents the shopping area that was targeted.

“It’s not just in the inner cities anymore, it’s stretching out and it gets scary,” she said. “You don’t know where to go.”

Residents of much of the state have been able to look at the mounting chaos in the Twin Cities and feel the relative safety that comes from distance. They will not be able to indefinitely.