Maplewood, MN - Suspect Shoots At Maple Police Officer - Chase - Steals DNR Vehicle - Escapes

KSTP.com - 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS
Updated: 05/03/2009 2:09 PM KSTP.com
POLICE: Maplewood officer shooter stole DNR vehicle

Authorities in northern Minnesota have launched a massive search for a man wanted for robbing a North St. Paul restaurant and shooting at a Maplewood Police officer last week.

They believe Quincy Adam Pederson, 38, of Willernie, may now be in Cook County.

Pederson is suspected of robbing a Subway restaurant in North St. Paul just before 10 p.m. on April 29.

A short time after the robbery, a Maplewood officer spotted a man who matched the robber's description driving a blue van. When the officer tried to pull him over, police say the man fired through the back window of the van at the officer.

The gunshots disabled the squad car and gave the suspect a chance to get away. The officer was unharmed.

The Ramsey County Attorney's Office filed first-degree assault and first-degree aggravated robbery charges Monday in connection to those events.

Law enforcement officials believe Pederson then stole a Minnesota Department of Natural Resources vehicle in St. Paul after the shooting. They say the missing vehicle is a white 1998 Ford Expedition with DNR logo on the front door.

A Cook County deputy attempted to stop a vehicle matching that description and bearing license plates stolen from a vehicle in Pine County over the weekend, however the driver sped away and the deputy lost him.

The Cook County Sheriff's Department said it's possible the driver of the Expedition was Pederson. The department, along with the U.S. Border Patrol, the Minnesota State Patrol and Conservation Officers, the Lake County Sheriff's Office, and the U.S. Forest Service set up road blocks around Cook County on Monday and conducted a ground and air search.

The stolen plates on the white Expedition were issued in Minnesota and bear the number RVJ-161. The vehicle was last seen in the Caribou Lake area of Cook County.

The Cook County Sheriff's Department said Pederson should be considered armed and dangerous.

If you see the vehicle or Pederson, please call 911 immediately.
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