What the heck is going on. This is starting to become a familiar trend and is getting old very quickly. I was so frustrated with the previous attempted abduction of the 15 year girl labor day weekend in Albertville(which the deemed by Wright Co. as not an attempted abduction due to the punks not touching her) and now this crap. Frustration is turning into anger, and I dare these or this SOB to do this in front of me or to my family....so help me God. Vigilence will turn into vigilanty very soon. Is it time the Albertville/St. Michael look into getting city cops? I'm serious, with 94 so close and what appears a limited police presence, I believe town cops is what we need for a strong local presence. Town cops will also add a better feel of who belongs in each neighborhood and who sticks out....such as meth heads selling magizines/punks breaking into garages/strange vehicles scoping people or property out/speeding/etc. Cities way smaller than us have town cops...and don't give me crap that its too much money...how much are we paying Wright Co. to patrol? Once again, I will be contacting our sheriff. I will be attending the next city meeting as well as I'm fed up.

Chris

Isn't the description of this man the same as the one who was driving the older conversion van a while back in the neighborhood that was asking girls to get into it? Is he now on foot??

I agree with Chris 100%! And WHY are these NOT reported on the nightly news??? And WHY is there NO community notification other than the Patch? RIDICULOUS! And if something happens to a child...UNFORGIVABLE that Wright County and the cities of St. Michael/Albertville hasn't done more to inform the community in order to protect the children.

Just goes to show you that a trained, vigilant, legally armed citizenry is the only solution to keeping our neighborhoods and children safe. The chances of the deputies "happening upon" this guy while in the act are almost zero. The chances of a citizen witnessing something and being able to act are much better. People don't realize that by the time law enforcement responds to a call, the incident is over and the offenders are gone. This is especially true with a 714.39 square mile county.

Let's start a crime watch. I'll start what do I do first?

Get trained and go get your permit to carry a concealed firearm. Meet all your neighbors. Pay attention to things in your neighborhood that look out of place. People loitering that do not belong, suspicious occupied vehicles. Nobody sits in a vehicle for an extended period of time by themselves unless it says Charter, Xcel, City of XXXXX, or is a police vehicle. Keep your cell with you. Take down plates and detailed descriptions, write them down. Call the Sheriff and make reports. If nobody calls, they will never know or be able to see a trend. You are responsible for defending your family and watching over your neighbors. The Sheriff is responsible for cleaning up a mess after it has already happened.

My family originally moved to the St. Michael/Albertville area in 2005 because of the small town feel and that it was a safe area with a good school district. We have two children, the eldest being 11. I have often let the 11-year-old go to a park a couple of blocks from our home with other neighbor friends who range in age from 9-12. We provide a cell phone with 911 programmed into it and have had a family talk about the previous incident with the white van and the rules about talking to strangers and not to accept money or food or believe a stranger if they say they know their parents and to never get in a stranger's vehicle. I realize that things can happen anywhere, but when it continues to keep happening, we're not letting the kids out of our sight until something is done.

You are 100% correct. We need a city Police Department. Wright County is very overloaded. When I first moved to Albertville in 2004, there was a strong deputy presence - now there is not. Contact the city!

I agree with you Pete. Police are called after a crime is committed. A well trained and armed citizenry can stop the crime from happening. It is ridiculous that we are not getting a better description of this individual or even a composite sketch!

And then there is this too:
http://stmichael.patch.com/articles/suspicious-man-in-hanover-area-claiming-to-be-a-school-official

CRIME WATCH CRIME WATCH CRIME WATCH GROUPS IN EVERY NEIGHBORHOOD!!! That is the best. Know your neighbors. Vary your normal path of walking, riding, driving etc. Don't leave garage door open-even when you are at home. Keep an one on who is at bus stop.Teach kids and adults what to do in case they are approached. The last girl who was approached in van did all the right things-And it was on the 10:00 news on channel 11. Call police even if you are not sure something is absolutely wrong. And please reconsider carrying a gun unless you are professionally trained. Even if you have your own police dept. they cannot be everywhere. Neighborhood eyes are the best. Here is link to start crime watch in Wright County. http://www.co.wright.mn.us/department/sheriff/sheriffb.htm

Thanks Anon for the link. We are going to talk with the Sheriff's Dept. on Monday of next week to wade through some of these things. Stay tuned.

You all sit and blame the police for not being there. How about this, you as parents or citizens of wright county start neighborhood watches, get out and meet your neighbors, watch you children. The police can't be every where. You as citizens need to take charge and make it known to these punks that it won't be tolerated in your neighborhood or the community. It's starts with you and the community to help. Contact your local police/ sherriff office and talk to the crime prevention officer to set up neighborhood meetings to find out what YOU can do to help prevent this kind of crap from continuing. No I'm not in law enforcement. I live in Brooklyn Park and as you all know it has become the new north Minneapolis. But we have done a lot as a community and as a neighborhood to get the trash out of the city. Again only You can make a difference.

I think Wright County could do a better job and us as citizens in this town that isn’t so small any more have a responsibility too. When we moved here in 1999 I was concerned about police coverage. Today that is still the case. I don’t think we have enough patrol in our neighborhoods or police presence in general – but that doesn’t solve everything. I definitely am going to look into getting a neighborhood watch program going on my street. I know some city’s will put up the signs for you – I didn’t see that info on Wright Countys website (http://www.co.wright.mn.us/department/sheriff/sheriffB.htm). We have had too many suspicious situations surrounding our kids in the STMA area. Thankfully all those kids are all safe. Probably due to parents talking to and educating their kiddos. But, this is scary – we need to keep talking about this, keep watching our streets and create a stronger partnership between Wright County and Albertville to make sure there isn’t a successful abduction in our area. I don’t think that good police departments just clean up messes, I think have to but they should also focus on education and prevention.

I think the biggest responsibility the wright county sheriff has is to inform as mych of the community ad posdible know in a timely when there is a threat in our community. So far, it his does not appear to be the case. Then, we can be watching carefully and talking to our children.

Well, what I can tell people here is that after the labor day abduction attempt in our neighborhood, which I heard about two days after the fact, is that several of our neighbors made sure we had eachothers cell phone numbers and plan to let eachother know when people are on vacation or away for a weekend. And yes, we look out for eachother...more vigilant as of late. So definately, not just sitting around on this LJ. Also, I don't think anyone is blaming the police force, as they respond very quickly to all calls and are definately not expected to be at the right spot at the same time (common sense). But I do I think a local police presence would help? Absolutley...again for reasons I state above. And from the three attempts since July and all were thwarted....I call that parents doing a heck of a job letting their kids know about these idiots out there. But I do agree, more needs to be done on our part. I would hope more folks show up at the next council meeting or contact the city/school/sheriff dept. on ways to create a neighborhood watch. In addition, ways of getting this information out quicker to the residents. Oh yeah, the attempted Labor day abduction wasn't on the news until Monday night and then again Tuesday morning.

Why are guns always the answer? Guns incite and escalate violence. Reduce the oppertunity for for violence and violence will be reduced. A gun is something that should be used as a last resort. Your gun is more likely to be used against you or stolen than ever used for protection. Vigilance is key. I agree that a police force would help a lot. In many aspects. One being that people drive around our community like jerks because there is rarely any enforcement to keep them in check. That attitude permiates the community sending the message to that criminals that they push the limits without recourse.

I can understand people’s frustration, but anger at the police and not the bad guys? First of all Muskyteeth, what do you think a Police Department will do for you better than the Sheriff’s Office? The police are the police regardless of what color their shirts are or what patch the have on their sleeves. The fact of the matter is that can’t be everywhere at once and is that what we really want? A Sheriff’s Deputy on every corner watching not only for a bad guy but all of us all the time. I would bet that most of us wouldn’t want that and would get frustrated and angered by seeing them everywhere. I am also betting the cost would be much greater at whose expense?
Pete, so arming ourselves will do what? You make it sound like we should all take up arms and walk the street with our guns. I would be careful with what you do, as you can make some bad headlines for our already at risk 2nd amendment right with your talk and your proposed actions. The first thing they teach you in the permit to carry class( I took mine) is when your gun should be used, there aren’t that many situations that would call for bringing out your gun and pointing it at someone! And it is a crime in itself if it was taken out in a situation when it shouldn’t have been.
I think we all need to protect ourselves and our loved ones with awareness and education.

The advice to start a Neighborhood Watch is a great start to doing that! If you have concerns in your neighborhood contact the Wright County Sheriff and get one set up! It can’t hurt as most of us probably don’t either know our neighbors or don’t know them well. I guess I am a little disappointed in my fellow citizens writing about how frustrated and angered they are but won’t help themselves and will lash out at the people trying to help.

Here is my fault with the Wright County Sheriff office: the taxpayers of this county paid heavily into a robo phone call alert system - which would appear to be perfectly designed for incidents like this. The Sheriffs office has misused that system for other non-emergency reasons -- but doesn't use it for this. WTH?

Yes, neighbors need to look out for each other -- but this isnt a brand new situation. The Sherriffs office has done a terrible job in communicating to the Alibertville/St Michael residents about this situation.

Al...thank you for your comment! I could not agree more! Well said.

Has the issue of STMA having their own Police dept ever been discussed? With the rapid growth of our community in the past years, STMA is now the largest community in Wright County (http://www.co.wright.mn.us/about.htm). Buffalo has their own police dept and also is home to the Wright County Sheriff's Dept. With the increase in these "events", I think it only prudent that we begin to discuss the possibility of incorporating a police force within our cities. I'm sure the first step the board would like to see is a petition started to prove to them that there is a genuine interest and support for this.

So, why instead of being angry with the creeps running around being a danger to the community, we are calling the Sheriff's Dept the bad guys? The perverts are the bad guys here, not the cops. Truth is, we HAVE a safe community because of what the Sheriff's Dept does. How many robberies, homicides, abductions, rapes, and all the other violent crime does Albertville have? People are completely right, the STMA area has blown up in size the past 10-15 years, and the Sheriff has stepped up to the challenge. I have always felt safe letting my kids go to the park and not have to feel scared for their safety. I saw all the cop cars on Saturday evening, there had to be at least 10 including the K9. Would a local police department be able to bring in those type of resources on a moments notice? A city of 6000-7000 with its own police department might only have 10 total employees! I had a Deputy at my house a month ago when I thought kids were in my neighbors garage late at night. I was wrong, but the Deputy who responded stopped by to talk with me to let me know what he found. He WAS personable, and showed he DOES care about our community. He told me he works in STMA every single night and to not hesitate to call in any suspicious behavior so he can check it out. Instead of blaming the Sheriff, we should be stepping up as a community to offer anything to help, and to work together to get these perverts off our streets!!!

Patty Zerkowski, you are completely correct! There are 2 Deputies on duty in both Albertville and St. Michael at all times, plus roving County coverage. The price the Cities pay the County for this coverage is pennies on the dollar for what it would cost to fund a Police Department. This issue is not a Wright County issue, it is a criminal act by people who need to be caught. Instead of casting blame let's help the County catch these guys by being aware, calling 9-1-1 when we see something suspicious, and maybe catching a license plate or description if we see somthing happen.

I'm confused. The headline "report unfounded" made it sound like this didn't happen, that the initial report was made up. Reading the story, it seems more like a case of "we couldn't find the guy so we're not worry about it anymore." Big difference between those two.

I'm sure there must be certain criteria for using a system that calls everyone in town with information on a situation like this! I would imagine that the police need specific information to be able to utilize it, probably some what the same as an Amber Alert on the news. I haven't called and asked the Sheriff but my guess is there is a reason why it wasn't used, I'm sure it is not just because they don't want to... It still comes down to awareness of potential dangers and education from responsible parents! Get out and meet your neighbors with your kids. I never heard of the "safe house" idea but I like it and will educate my kids with it.

I don't believe that people, or more specifically myself, are blaming the Sheriff's department. I personally think they do a fantastic job with the resources available to them. I just believe that a more visible police presence would act as a deterrence for these types of crimes adding an additional layer of protection to our residents. Being that there are only 2 dedicated officers to cover our the 41.1 sq/mi or our 2 cities, that seems to be a fairly low ratio.

Well said Mr. Bullen! Our taxes would through the roof if we had our own Police Department, it to mention the Headache (Rogers), we have it pretty good with Wright County Patroling our Streets. If you have any Questions just call Maple Grove, Plymouth, or Rogers to see what is in their Budget for City Police. Get to know your Neighbors, and don't hesitate calling Wright County, even if you think it is a worthless report... I call them when I see a suspicious vehicle on my street.

Ricky why dont you re read my comments and see if I call for anyone to take any rash actions. Dont assume, you make an ass of u and me

This has happened one too many times :( I grew up in st.michael and nothing like this has ever happened. But I can't believe there is not more of a description.. if you can tell the guy is balding than you certainly can tell what color hair he has or age range etc???? If there is a description at all (even if its a small one) it may help..........