Robert Lewis Gray JR

On December 2, 2025, at 6:29 P.M., Hastings police officers responded to a report of a shoplifting that had just occurred at a business in the City of Hastings, Dakota County, Minnesota. When the officer arrived, the Loss Prevention Officer at the business told the Hastings Police Officer that the defendant, Robert Lewis Gray, had selected $93.58 worth of food from the business and then left without paying for the food. The defendant then sat on a bench outside the business and consumed some of the food he had stolen.

An officer went to place the defendant in handcuffs and observed that the defendant was wearing a glove on one hand, but not the other. The officer attempted to pull the glove off the defendant’s hand, but the defendant clenched his fingers to keep the officer from removing the glove. The officer was eventually able to remove the glove from the defendant’s hand. The officer then peeled the defendant’s fingers back and observed two small plastic bags containing what he believed was methamphetamine.

The contents of both bags tested positive for methamphetamine, and the net weight of one bag was.86 grams.