A woman punched a store manager in the face and stole pepper spray from a Maplewood auto parts store before being arrested nearby, according to charges.
Joce’Ylnn Renae Mapps, 31, of Saint Paul, faces a charge of first-degree aggravated robbery.
According to the complaint, police responded to a robbery at an auto parts store in Maplewood on September 24. Officers learned that a customer had punched the manager in the face and stolen pepper spray before fleeing on foot.
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The manager told officers that Mapps entered the store carrying bags. The manager told Mapps to put the bags she was carrying on the counter while she shopped, which Mapps did. Suspicious, the manager followed Mapps and offered help, but Mapps declined and told her not to follow. Mapps then said that if she wanted to steal, she would, and took pepper spray from a shelf, putting it in her back pocket.
When the manager told Mapps she could not take her bags unless she returned the pepper spray, Mapps threatened her and punched her in the face. Mapps then grabbed her bags and left the store with the pepper spray. Another employee reported hearing the argument and tried to prevent Mapps from leaving, but Mapps punched the manager again and pushed through the door.
Officers found Mapps entering a tobacco shop nearby. After a struggle with police, Mapps was detained. The manager positively identified Mapps during a show-up. Police searched Mapps’ bags and found the stolen pepper spray still in its packaging.
After being read her rights, Mapps admitted to being in the store and said she put her bags on the counter. She told officers the manager kept following her and that she decided to grab the store’s “mace.” Mapps claimed the manager tried to stop her and started punching her, so she “swung back” to protect herself and “accidentally” hit the manager in the face. Mapps said she only left the store with one item before going to the tobacco shop.
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; Ramsey County Community Corrections operates the Ramsey County Correctional Facility in Maplewood.
