Elk River Police Report: At Orono Park, tree chopped down by suspects with machetes; man with warrant claims he’s his brother; and online vehicle deal turns sour

by Joni Astrup

Associate Editor

Two suspects with machetes reportedly chopped down a tree at Orono Park in Elk River recently.

The damage to the $300 to $400 river birch was reported to police on April 8. The tree was near the restrooms by the beach, on the west side of Lake Orono.

Elk River Police Capt. Joe Gacke said the matter is under investigation.

Meanwhile, on April 4, a theft from a vehicle was reported at the park, which is located at 18599 Gary St. The victim told police that she parked her vehicle in the parking lot at about 4:15 p.m. When she came back about a half hour later, a window on her vehicle was smashed and a bag was missing.

Man with warrant claims he’s his brother

Police arrested a 54-year-old Elk River man after he was stopped for speeding on April 4 and gave false information to police.

An officer had clocked the vehicle on radar going 42 mph in a 30 mph zone in the 300 block of Baldwin Avenue in Elk River. The driver was identified, was found to have given false information and admitted he identified himself as his brother, according to the police report.

The driver had a cancelled driving status and an active misdemeanor warrant for his arrest.

He was arrested and transported to the Sherburne County Jail in Elk River.

Man loses $1,000 in online vehicle buy

A 46-year-old Elk River man reported that he was scammed out of $1,000 while trying to put a down payment on a vehicle that he found on Facebook.

The payment was made through Zelle and Paypal in the amount of $500 each.

The fraud was reported to police on April 6.

Woman arrested for domestic assault

Police arrested a 36-year-old Elk River woman for assault after a domestic incident on April 5.

Police were called to an Elk River home at 8:21 a.m. where a male and female were having an argument and the female was reportedly not allowing the male to leave a bedroom. The conflict was captured on video. During the incident the female allegedly appeared to strike the male in the face and block him from leaving the bedroom, according to the police report.

Woman cited after failing to scan all her groceries at Walmart

Police cited a 32-year-old Elk River woman after a loss prevention officer at Walmart in Elk River reported that the suspect used the self checkout and did not scan or pay for all of her groceries. She was cited for theft and left the store.

The incident happened shortly after 5:30 p.m. April 8.

Anoka woman arrested for DWI

A 46-year-old Anoka woman was arrested for DWI at approximately 2:30 a.m. April 7. An officer had observed the vehicle traveling near Proctor Avenue and Highway 10 in Elk River with one headlight not operating. While following the vehicle, the officer observed several lane violations.

The vehicle was stopped and the driver was arrested for DWI.