Suspect Armed with Stolen Gun Arrested in Rochester Assault Case

Rochester, MN (KROC-AM News)- Rochester Police say a man suspected of possessing a stolen gun and assaulting a guest in his apartment is in custody.

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Police Captain Casey Moilanen said officers were dispatched to the assault call shortly before 8 p.m. Friday. The victim is described by police as a 26-year-old woman.

The assault was reported to have occurred at an apartment in the 300 block of 31st St. Northeast. The victim told officers she was at the apartment visiting and drinking alcohol with a friend when her friend’s significant other, identified as 38-year-old James Robert Conway Jr. of Rochester came into the apartment and began yelling at her to leave.

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Conway then began waving a handgun around while asking the victim to leave, the police report says. The woman told officers she began filming Conway Jr. with her phone and said he responded by grabbing her hand, taking the phone and throwing it at a wall, which caused the phone to break, Moilanen said.

Conway Jr. then grabbed the woman by the neck and threw her onto a couch, Moilanen said. The woman fled the apartment and reported the alleged assault.

Conway Jr. Olmsted County ADC

Moilanen said responding officers executed a search warrant at the apartment and located a .22 caliber handgun and a 9mm handgun. The .22 caliber gun was reported stolen out of Rochester, according to the police report.

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Conway Jr. was arrested on suspicion of second-degree assault, first-degree property damage, fifth-degree assault, receiving stolen property and terroristic threats. He’s awaiting arraignment in Olmsted County Court.

Moilanen said a Mayo Clinic Ambulance crew treated the victim at the scene for minor injuries.

The victim’s nephew and nieces, who were described by police as young juveniles, were also at the apartment during the alleged assault. They were uninjured.