Eagan Police Use Taser on Car Theft Suspect

An Apple Valley man has been charged with car theft and assaulting a police officer after an altercation earlier this week in which Eagan police used a Taser on him.

Dexter Romondao Jefferson, 18, is charged with three felonies: car theft and receiving stolen property, each of which carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $10,000 fine, and fourth-degree assault, which has a maximum penalty of three years in prison and a $6,000 fine.

Jefferson remained in the Dakota County Jail Thursday on a $100,000 bond. An omnibus hearing in his case is scheduled for Nov. 14 in Dakota County District Court in Hastings.

According to the criminal complaint, an Eagan police officer was on routine patrol near Lexington Avenue and Wescott Road at about 3 a.m. Monday when he spotted a car on Westbury Lane, parked on the side of the road with brake lights on, but no headlights.

As the officer pulled up behind the car, a man later identified as Jefferson jumped out of the car. The officer asked him what he was doing; he told the officer that he was waiting for his friend, the complaint says.

Jefferson was unable to tell the officer his friend’s name or identify the house in which the friend lived, according to the complaint. When police checked the car’s license plates, they discovered that it had been reported stolen from North St. Paul.

The officer approached Jefferson, told him he was under arrest and told him to put his hands behind his back, at which point Jefferson began to run west.

Officers chased Jefferson, caught him and tackled him to the ground, but he repeatedly pushed them away from him in an attempt to get away, according to the complaint. Police continued to order him to stop resisting; when he continued to struggle, they used a Taser on him.

During the struggle, one of the officers suffered scratches on top of his head, the complaint says.

When police asked him why he ran, Jefferson told them he thought he had outstanding warrants and didn’t want to go back to jail, according to the complaint.