A fire inspector with the city of St. Paul’s Department of Safety and Inspections has been charged with three felonies after authorities say he allegedly picked up a girl who had missed her bus, brought her to his apartment and tried to sexually assault her and pay her for sex.
James Allen Thomas, 73, of Woodbury, was charged with one count of kidnapping, one count of second-degree attempted criminal sexual conduct with someone under 14, and one count of soliciting a child to engage in sexual conduct, according to the criminal complaint.
The city confirmed that Thomas is employed as a DSI Fire Safety Inspector II.
The complaint gave the following details about the charges:
At about 10:12 a.m. on May 21, The 13-year-old said that after she missed her bus she began to walk to school. As she walked, she decided to go into a medical clinic nearby to ask for help because she was getting cold and wet from the rain. As she neared the clinic’s entrance on Phalen Boulevard, a man in a gray SUV asked if she needed help.
Shivering, she said yes and then used her school iPad to communicate to the man that she needed a ride to middle school. When she got into his vehicle, she noticed the man was wearing a uniform with a patch and his name embroidered on the shirt. He also had a radio “like a police officer,” the complaint said. She assumed he was a security officer.
Rather than drive toward the school, he drove her to an apartment building, brought her into an apartment and locked the door behind them. He motioned for her to go into the bedroom. She did and sat on the bed.
When he tried to touch her and then offered her $50, she said no. He then grabbed her iPad and asked if her location was on. She said it did and that she needed to get to school. They left immediately after that.
He brought her back to his car and asked questions such as if she had ever had sex and what her home address was. The girl remembered her mother had warned her to never give out her address so the girl gave her school address. Eventually, he brought her to the school. As soon as she got out of the car, she began to cry.
Thomas got out of the car when he saw a staff member hugging the girl and said he was a “sergeant with the St. Paul Fire Department” who had picked the girl up and brought her to school.
Shortly after, the girl was taken to the Midwest Children’s Resource Center for a medical evaluation.
The girl identified Thomas in a photo line up and then was able to identify his apartment building and apartment when authorities took her to the area. Security camera footage from the medical clinic showed the girl getting into Thomas’ vehicle.
Thomas was arrested on June 5, 2025. He waived his legal rights and admitted giving the girl a ride to school that day. When he was told that his vehicle was “equipped with a device that automatically tracks exactly where the vehicle goes and how it’s being driven,” he then added that he had to stop by his apartment to lock it because it had been broken into recently. He said the girl remained in the car at the time.
He denied touching the girl other than possibly grazing her arm when he looked at her iPad. He also added that the girl “looked about 10 years old and seemed “scared (expletive)” while she was with him.
Thomas is scheduled to have his first court appearance at 9 a.m. Monday.
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