Suicidal Sex Offender in Six-Hour Standoff Charged with Fleeing Police

A suicidal convicted sex offender who caused a six-hour standoff with police last week by clinging to a bridge over the Mississippi River has been charged in Dakota County with leading Eagan police on the high-speed chase that culminated in the standoff.  

Oudone Xiong, 37, of St. Paul is charged in Dakota County with fleeing a peace officer in a motor vehicle, a felony with a maximum penalty of three years in prison and a $5,000 fine.

According to the Dakota County complaint, Eagan police were called to help Ramsey County in tracking down Xiong, who had apparently told his parole officer that he was thinking about killing himself.

Ramsey County dispatchers told Eagan dispatchers that they had pinged Xiong’s cell phone and determined that he was at the intersection of Pilot Knob Road and Duckwood Drive, driving a blue Ford Ranger.

Officers spotted the Ford Ranger in an alley near the intersection of Krestwood Lane and Duckwood Drive, and saw an Asian man sitting in the driver’s seat. They followed as the driver–later identified as Xiong—drove out of a parking lot and turned right on Krestwood without signaling.

Police continued following Xiong as he turned right onto Duckwood, again without signaling. They turned on their emergency lights just east of Town Centre Drive, but Xiong accelerated through a four-way stop intersection.

Xiong then went north on Denmark Avenue and sped through a red light at Yankee Doodle Road and Denmark, narrowly missing another vehicle, according to the complaint. He turned left onto Yankee Doodle and entered the northbound Interstate 35E ramp.

Police continued to pursue Xiong north on I-35E, reaching speeds of 90 mph. As Xiong’s vehicle approached the Mississippi River bridge, he abruptly stopped, and he jumped out, running to the right shoulder of the road, jumping over a barrier and then over a safety fence, the complaint says.

Xiong threatened to jump if officers approached him, according to the complaint.

Officers from the Eagan Police Department’s hostage negotiation team, along with Ramsey County authorities, a Hennepin County water patrol unit, a K-9 unit and other negotiators were involved in the subsequent six-hour standoff, during which northbound traffic on I-35E was delayed for four hours.

Xiong was convicted in 2011 of sexually assaulting the 12-year-old daughter of his then-girlfriend. The girl told police that Xiong removed her bra, touched her genitals and asked her whether she knew how men and women have sex. 

Xiong later admitted that he touched the victim’s breasts and vaginal area and offered to educate her about sex, though he said he used bad judgment and made a mistake, according to court documents.

Xiong was sentenced last year to a year in jail and a 12-year prison sentence, which was stayed for 20 years. He is also required to register as a sex offender.

A warrant for Xiong’s arrest has been issued in Dakota County. He remains hospitalized and in Ramsey County custody after surrendering to police late on the evening of Oct. 16, and was scheduled to appear at a probation violation hearing in Ramsey County District Court on Monday afternoon.

Dennis Gerhardstein, a media spokesman for the Ramsey County attorney’s office, said Xiong will be returned to the hospital after today’s hearing. Once the Ramsey County charges are resolved, Xiong will answer the Dakota County charge.