A St. Paul man has been sentenced to 24 years in federal prison for stealing from a woman and robbing two others at gunpoint — making one drive from Arden Hills to Minneapolis — on three days in 2022.

Raphael Raymond Nunn, 58, was sentenced last week in U.S. District Court in St. Paul after a jury in May found him guilty of kidnapping, bank fraud and identity theft.

Raphael Raymond Nunn (Courtesy of the Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office)

Prosecutors asked Judge Eric Tostrud to give Nunn a 27-year sentence, calling Nunn a “relentless offender” and “life-long fraudster whose calculated deceit has left a wake of financial devastation spanning nearly three decades.”

Minnesota court records show that Nunn has three convictions for auto theft, two for check forgery and one for financial transaction card fraud.

According to federal court documents:

Nunn was wearing a mask and gloves and armed with a black handgun when he approached a 61-year-old woman who had just parked her 2003 Lexus in an underground parking garage at her work in the 3900 block of Northwood Drive in Arden Hills just before 7:30 a.m. Sept. 13, 2022.

When the woman got out of her car, Nunn approached her with the gun. After the woman grabbed the barrel of the gun, he pushed her to the ground and then forced her back into the vehicle at gunpoint.

He ordered her to drive to an ATM at Wells Fargo at 2600 E. Franklin in Minneapolis. There, he forced her to withdraw cash using her debit card until she reached her limit of $1,000. He then forced her to call her bank and get a PIN number to withdraw cash from her credit card. He also took $30 from her wallet. He then ordered her to drive to Matthews Park at 2438 27th Ave. S. in Minneapolis.

Once at the park, he told her to get out of the vehicle and leave her key fob and phone in the car. He told her she could find her vehicle at the other side of the park after he was gone. When the woman walked to her vehicle, he was gone and she called the police.

Video surveillance cameras showed Nunn getting out of her car and walking to Cedar Food & Grill at 2600 Cedar Ave. in Minneapolis. Once inside the store, he bought a bottle of soda and took off his hood. He was no longer wearing the mask, which he had discarded during his walk. Four days later he returned to the store in his own vehicle, which allowed authorities to identify him as the suspect.

He was arrested Sept. 22, 2022, in Minneapolis. A search found evidence of the kidnapping and two previous crimes that year.

Law enforcement linked Nunn to the robbery of a woman in a Target parking lot in Hudson, Wis., on Jan. 8. Using a black handgun, Nunn threatened to kill the woman if she refused to hand over her purse. He then used her bank cards to make several purchases in St. Paul, totaling about $180.

Nunn also was tied to the theft of a woman’s backpack, which included her debit card, at Twin Cities Orthopedics in Oak Park Heights on Aug. 9. He then used the card to make $430 in fraudulent transactions in Lake Elmo and Oak Park Park Heights.

“Nunn inflicted not just financial losses, but emotional and psychological scars, as his victims were left with a lasting sense of vulnerability and fear,” federal prosecutors wrote in a document to the judge. “His pattern of criminal behavior demonstrates a lack of empathy, exemplifying the very reasons our justice system categorizes his actions as serious offenses requiring decisive punishment.”

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ALPINE, Texas (AP) — Three U.S. Army soldiers at Fort Cavazos, Texas, have been arrested on human smuggling charges, U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza for the Western District of Texas said Thursday.

Soldiers Emilio Mendoza Lopez, Angel Palma, 20, and Enrique Jauregui, 25, were arrested after a vehicle allegedly driven by Palma and carrying Mendoza Lopez, a Mexican national and two Guatemalan nationals was stopped Nov. 27 by law enforcement in Presidio along the border with Mexico, about 500 miles (805 kilometers) southwest of Dallas.

Mike Lahrman, a spokesman for Esparza, said he did not know the soldier’s ranks or whether action had been taken against them by the military. A spokesman for Fort Cavazos did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

“Mendoza Lopez and Palma allegedly traveled from Fort Cavazos to Presidio for the purpose of picking up and transporting undocumented noncitizens,” Esparza said in a statement.

“Jauregui is alleged to be the recruiter and facilitator of the human smuggling conspiracy,” according to Esparza. “Data extracted from Palma’s phone through a search warrant revealed messages between the three soldiers indicating collaboration in the smuggling operation.”

Mendoza Lopez was arrested at the scene of the Nov. 27 traffic stop while Palma, who prosecutors said fled the scene of the traffic stop, and Jauregui were arrested Tuesday at Fort Cavazos, about 125 miles (201 kilometers) south of Dallas, Lahrman said.

Mendoza Lopez’s attorney, Shane Chriesman, said he is awaiting more information, known as discovery, from prosecutors on the charge.

“Once I get discovery and have a chance to assess the case we’ll develop a plan of attack” and will try to get a bond set for Mendoza Lopez, who is currently jailed without bail, Chriesman said.

No attorneys are listed in jail records who could speak for for Palma and Jauregui, who are awaiting their first court appearance on Friday, according to Esparza.

By MICHAEL RUBINKAM and MATTHEW BROWN

Swaths of Pennsylvania and many other states are honeycombed with old, unstable mines that can cause the earth to suddenly give way — a phenomenon known as “ mine subsidence ” that poses a threat to people and property.

That’s what searchers in Westmoreland County, just southeast of Pittsburgh, fear led to the disappearance of 64-year-old Elizabeth Pollard. Pollard and a young granddaughter were looking for a lost cat when she went missing Monday evening. At about the same time, a sinkhole appeared roughly 20 feet (6 meters) from where she had parked her car, in an area above an old coal mine. The granddaughter was found safe inside the car hours later, while the difficult and potentially dangerous search for Pollard continues.

Mine subsidence has caused billions of dollars in damage in areas of the U.S. where mining once took place. In Pennsylvania alone, coal was mined in nearly half of the state’s 67 counties and there are at least 5,000 abandoned underground mines, leaving behind hazards that officials say can arise at any time.

The Marguerite Mine that authorities believe resulted in the sinkhole was last operated in 1952 by the H.C. Frick Coke Co., according to the state Department of Environmental Protection. The coal seam in the area is about 20 feet (6 meters) beneath the surface.

The state Bureau of Abandoned Mine Reclamation will examine the scene when the search concludes to see if the sinkhole was indeed caused by mine subsidence, spokesperson Neil Shader said.

There are as many as 500,000 abandoned mines in the U.S. — far outnumbering those that are still active, according to the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration.

In many cases their owners simply walked away from coal or precious metals mines when they became uneconomical to operate and declared bankruptcy, leaving behind safety hazards and costly pollution cleanups that public agencies must handle.

Old mines pose myriad dangers, with 381 people killed and 152 injured at abandoned mine sites nationwide between 2000 and 2013, according to the U.S. Bureau of Land Management.

Victims can fall into hidden shafts, get lost in underground tunnels or perish from poisonous gases present in many old coal mines. Mine shafts can extend hundreds of feet beneath the surface and often are unmarked.

State and federal agencies have sealed off many old mines. But more are discovered every year and officials have yet to conduct basic risk analyses on most of the abandoned mines on federal land.

Besides the safety hazards, millions of gallons of water loaded with arsenic, lead and other toxic metals flows daily from contaminated mine sites without being treated.

Rubinkam reported form northeastern Pennsylvania and Brown reported from Billings, Montana.

Olivia Lloyd | (TNS) The Charlotte Observer

CHARLOTTE, N.C.— A pet food company based in North Carolina is recalling puppy mix sold in seven states after a batch tested positive for salmonella, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said.

The contamination came to light when a litter of puppies got sick after consuming Blue Ridge Beef’s Puppy Mix, and the customer reported it to the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, according to the FDA.

The FDA said it notified the company that the food tested positive for salmonella on Nov. 27, and Blue Ridge Beef issued a voluntary recall on its 2-pound plastic-wrapped logs sold in North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, Connecticut, Massachusetts and New York.

The recall affects puppy mix sold from Aug. 6 to Aug. 23 with logs labeled with lot numbers 08/06/N25 and 08/16/N25, with UPC 854298001696.

It’s not the company’s only recall in the past year. In January, Blue Ridge Beef expanded a December 2023 recall of its puppy mix, as well as some of its kitten food, due to possible salmonella and listeria contamination, FDA records show.

“Pets with Salmonella infections may be lethargic and have diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, fever and vomiting,” according to the FDA. “Some pets will have only decreased appetite, fever, and abdominal pain. Infected but otherwise healthy pets can be carriers and infect other animals or humans.”

Pet owners who notice these symptoms should notify their veterinarian.

Humans are also at risk of contracting the food-borne illness if they don’t wash their hands or sanitize surfaces the product has touched.

The FDA said customers who believe they purchased the recalled mix should return the product to the place they bought it or destroy the food in a way that ensures no humans or animals will be contaminated.

The company declined to comment on the recall to McClatchy News on Dec. 3. Blue Ridge Beef is located in Statesville in Iredell County, about a 40-mile drive north from Charlotte.

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