On Saturday, October 18, 2025, at approximately 9:25 P.M., St. Anthony Police Officer Sam Shafer (hereinafter, “Officer Shafer”) responded to: [ADDRESS REDACTED] (“Cub Foods”) in response to a theft. The caller/staff, Nathan D. Erickson, (hereinafter, Reporting Person”) reported a black female wearing a black hooded sweatshirt and black pants had stolen from the store. The reporting person reported seeing the suspect running towards the area of Steele and Hops and the Holiday gas station. Officer Shafter arrived in the area in a fully marked squad car (#721) and began checking the area for the suspect.
Officer Shafer saw the Reporting Person and spoke with him. The Reporting Person told Officer Shafer he believed the suspect had walked and "ducked" towards Steele and Hops on foot. Officer Shafer drove into the Steele and Hops parking lot and saw what appeared to be a black jacket on the ground under a Ford Escape in the parking lot. Officer Shafer positioned his squad car behind the Ford Escape and saw a black female wearing a grey sweatshirt and black pants walking southbound (away) from the vehicle.
Officer Shafer knew, based on his training and experience as a police officer that suspects who are actively attempting to flee arrest/detention may discard their jackets, sweatshirts, and/or other articles of clothing in order to conceal their identity and change their physical appearance to deceive responding officers. Officer Shafer exited his squad car and told the female to stop and she complied. Officer Shafer asked the female, later identified as Mary Ann Seldon, [DOB redacted] (hereinafter, “Defendant”) if the jacket belonged to her and she said it did.
The Defendant admitted she was at Cub Foods; therefore, based on the totality of the circumstances, including the Defendant matching the description of the suspect, being in close proximity to the call location, being in close proximity to the discarded jacket and backpack, claiming ownership of those items, and her admission that she was at Cub Foods, Officer Shafer told the Defendant she was under arrest for theft and searched her incident-to- arrest. While doing this, the Defendant said she had swallowed/taken narcotics and said she could not breathe; therefore, an ambulance was requested to the scene with an emergency response.
Because the Defendant was under arrest, Officer Shafer secured her in the backseat of a squad car and requested St. Anthony Police Officer Tristan Norlien (hereinafter, “Officer Norlien”) monitor the Defendant while awaiting the ambulance. Subsequent checks on the Defendant revealed a gross misdemeanor theft warrant out of Hennepin County. Officer Shafer searched the Defendant’s belongings incident to her arrest. Officer Shafer recovered several items of a white, powdery/crystal-like substance in the interior pocket of the jacket the Defendant claimed ownership of.
