Between 10:00 AM and 11:30 AM on March 6, 2026, NICHOLAS LEE JACOBSON [DOB REDACTED], CHESTER ALLEN WHITMORE [DOB REDACTED], and Karen Whitmore [DOB REDACTED] went into the Williams Sonoma at 1595 Highway 36 West, Roseville, Ramsey County. The trio canvassed the kitchen appliances and asked questions about certain models and brands. They said they would return at a later time. At around 1:15 PM on March 6, 2026, Jacobson returned to Williams Sonoma, quickly selected a Jura E8 espresso machine valued at $2799.95, ran out of the store with it, and got into a black SUV which fled the parking lot at a high rate of speed.
There was no license plates on the black SUV. A FLOCK camera showed a 2020 Jeep Cherokee bearing Minnesota license plates SVV651 entering the Rosedale Center at around 10:57 AM on March 6, 2026. The Jeep is registers to Karen Whitmore. Surveillance video showed Jacobson and the two Whitmores parked in a handicapped space outside of Von Maur before they entered the mall. At around 1:40 PM on March 6, 2026, Chester Whitmore on a Jura E8 espresso machine at We Pay More Pawn in New Hope. Jacobson and Whitmore were later stopped in the Jeep Cherokee and arrested.
They both declined custodial interviews. Chester Whitmore, Karen Whitmore, and Jacobson have numerous pawn transactions involving suspected stolen items since January 2026. Whitmore committed this offense while charged with a felony theft in Dakota County District Court file 19HA-CR-26-200. Jacobson stole a gold necklace valued at $8000 and fled in a black 2020 Jeep Cherokee. Jacobson and Whitmore cased the store earlier in the day before the theft. Whitmore committed this offense while charged with a gross misdemeanor theft in Dakota County District Court file 19AV-CR-26-1394. Whitmore, his mother, and another man stole $652.98 worth of merchandise from a target before fleeing in an SUV bearing Minnesota license plates SVV651. Jacobson committed this offense while charged with a felony theft in Dakota County District Court file 19HA-CR-26-198. Jacobson stole a gold necklace valued at $8000 and fled in a black 2020 Jeep Cherokee.
Jacobson and Whitmore cased the store earlier in the day before the theft. Jacobson has 3 prior felony convictions: assault in the second degree, and terroristic threats, and assault in the fourth degree.
