On April 7, 2026, at approximately 8:37 P.M., Saint Paul Officer Mihigo was in a squad car in the area of Rice Street & Maryland Avenue, Saint Paul, County of Ramsey, when he observed a 2007 gray Honda Accord driving east on Maryland Avenue. The rear occupants of the vehicle and the driver were not wearing seat belts. Officer Mihigo followed the vehicle and activated squad emergency lights as the vehicle turned east on Hawthorne Avenue from Rice Street. Officer Mihigo approached the vehicle. LER PWE MOO, [DOB REDACTED], was the driver.
There were a total of five occupants. MOO was advised of the reason for the stop. MOO and the rear occupants said they were not wearing seatbelts because they forgot. J1, a juvenile, was the front passenger. MOO was the registered owner of the vehicle. MOO said he did not have insurance on the vehicle. He said he just bought the vehicle. MOO was advised the vehicle would be impounded because it was not insured. All occupants were asked to exit the vehicle and were pat frisked. MOO had a black bag across his chest.
Inside the front pocket of the bag, there was an “auto sear,” also known as a “switch” that can be used to modify a firearm into a machine gun. The vehicle was searched. During the search, Officer Mihigo located a black fanny pack on the front passenger side floorboard. Inside the fanny pack, there was a black handgun-Taurus G3 9mm-with a magazine and rounds of ammunition. J1 said, “Hey, it’s mine,” referring to the firearm. J1 said the firearm was his, and not his friend’s. He said he was sixteen-years-old and did not have a permit to carry a firearm.
After a Miranda advisory, MOO spoke to an investigator. MOO said the fanny pack belonged to J1. He did not know there was a gun in the fanny pack and did not know there was a switch in his bag. MOO believed J1 placed the switch in his bag. MOO said his DNA might be on the switch, but only because he reached into the bag to get his wallet and driver’s license for officers. After a Miranda advisory, J1 spoke to an investigator. He said there was a Taurus inside the fanny pack. No one else in the vehicle knew about the gun and had not handled it.
J1 said he had the gun for protection. J1 denied knowing about the switch, and said he did not put anything in MOO’s bag.
