Fire Inspector Allegedly Drove Girl to Apartment, Tried to Assault Her

Jun 10

A 73-year-old fire inspector is charged after he allegedly abducted a 13-year-old girl in Saint Paul and attempted to sexually assault her.

James Allen Thomas has been charged with felony kidnapping, attempted second-degree criminal sexual conduct, and solicitation of a child for sexual conduct.

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According to the criminal complaint, the girl was walking toward a clinic on the morning of May 21 after missing her school bus when Thomas, dressed in a dark uniform with a patch and an embroidered name while seated in a gray SUV, offered her a ride. The girl told investigators she thought Thomas was a security officer based on his appearance and agreed to accept the ride after showing him her school’s location on her iPad.

Instead of heading toward the school, Thomas drove the girl to his apartment in Saint Paul. Inside, she said Thomas locked the door and led her to a bedroom, where he attempted to spread her legs and offered her $50 in exchange for allowing him to touch her. She refused. He then offered the same amount for her to touch him, which she again refused. When he grabbed her iPad and asked if the location feature was on, which she said it was. Thomas then drove her to her middle school.

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School staff said the girl appeared visibly shaken when she arrived and hugged one staff member tightly before breaking down in tears. The staff member told police that Thomas got out of the SUV and claimed to be a “Sergeant with the Saint Paul Fire Department.” He reportedly told the employee he had picked the girl up on Phalen Boulevard.

Surveillance footage from the clinic confirmed Thomas’s vehicle arrived just before 8:35 a.m. and left with the girl a few minutes later. She was dropped off at the school nearly an hour later, at 9:23 a.m., after a route that investigators say should have taken just 15 minutes.

Investigators traced the SUV using FLOCK license plate reader data and identified it as registered to Thomas, a City of Saint Paul Fire DSI Inspector. Security footage showed a dashboard placard in the vehicle matching one later observed by police.

Data obtained from Thomas’s phones showed both devices were in the area of the clinic during the timeframe in question and were shut off shortly after leaving the lot—consistent with surveillance video. The phones remained off until after the girl had been dropped off at school.

Thomas was arrested on June 5 and waived his rights during questioning. He admitted picking the girl up and taking her to his apartment, claiming he needed to check on a previously broken-into unit. He denied that the girl ever left the vehicle or that any inappropriate contact occurred, though he described her as appearing "scared s***less" during the ride.

Thomas posted $100,000 bail and was released after making an initial court appearance. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of 40 years for kidnapping, 25 years for attempted sexual contact, and 3 years for solicitation.

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