A man wearing an eye patch and a surgical boot helped an intoxicated woman to a bench at a Saint Paul bus-rapid transit platform, then snatched her coin holder and pushed her to the ground before walking away with her money, according to charges.
James Garnett Jr., 66, of Saint Paul, faces a charge of simple robbery. The charge was filed Thursday in Ramsey County District Court.
According to the complaint, officers responded to a 911 call at about 2:45 p.m. on August 31, 2026, after a woman reported being assaulted and having her money taken at a bus-rapid transit platform in Saint Paul. The Real Time Information Center told officers that a woman had been seen falling onto the platform while exiting a bus, and a man was seen assisting her before apparently taking something from her.
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When officers arrived, they found an intoxicated woman with a seven-year-old girl. The woman was largely uncooperative but said a man had taken her pouch, which she claimed contained about $150. The next morning, the woman contacted officers again and said that $500 had been taken from her during the encounter.
Surveillance video recovered by police showed the woman and the child exiting a bus shortly before the 911 call. The woman lost her balance and fell onto the platform. The child got the attention of a man sitting nearby, who helped the woman up and escorted her to a bench. A minute later, the man snatched what appeared to be a coin holder from the woman’s hand.
When she tried to grab his arm, he pushed her away, causing her to fall again, then put the coin holder in his pocket and walked away. The man in the video was wearing an eye patch and a surgical boot.
Nine days later, officers on patrol saw a man at another bus-rapid transit platform in downtown Saint Paul who matched the man seen in the video. He was identified as James Garnett Jr. He was still wearing the eye patch but not the surgical boot, telling officers he had had the boot removed.
In a Mirandized interview, Garnett confirmed he was the man who had interacted with the woman that day, saying, “she fell, I picked her up and kept walking with my wife.” He denied taking anything from the woman, despite the video evidence.
The complaint notes that in late 2024, a neighbor reported that Garnett assaulted and took money from him, resulting in a facial fracture. Garnett was convicted of third-degree assault for that incident in January 2026. His criminal record also includes older convictions for assault, threats of violence, domestic assault, violation of order for protection and attempted simple robbery.
Garnett’s next court appearance in Ramsey County is scheduled for September 30, 2026.
About This Charge
Minnesota distinguishes simple robbery (§ 609.24, up to 10 years) from aggravated robbery (§ 609.245), which the state may charge on either of two independent grounds: being armed with a dangerous weapon (real, simulated or implied), or inflicting bodily harm, with no weapon required. First-degree aggravated robbery carries up to 20 years; second-degree up to 15. Carjacking is charged under § 609.247.
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Jurisdictional Context
Ramsey County encompasses Saint Paul and is served by the Ramsey County Attorney’s Office. Felony cases are heard in the Second Judicial District at the Ramsey County Courthouse in downtown Saint Paul; the Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office operates the Ramsey County Correctional Facility in Maplewood.
