Jury Returns Not Guilty Verdict in Rochester Burglary Case

Rochester, MN (KROC-AM News) -  An Olmsted County jury has acquitted a man of a first-degree burglary charge.

The not guilty verdict was handed down earlier this week in the case of 27-year-old Lanick Jaspein Knight. He was accused of forcing his way into an apartment in the 1400 block of 1st Avenue Southwest in early February while the tenant was in the residence.

According to the criminal complaint, the resident told Rochester police that he had recently been in the hospital and had allowed Knight to stay in his apartment during that time. He stated that Knight, whom he had only known for a short time, left without any issues when he returned from his hospital stay.

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The court document also says the alleged victim told police that Knight was not on the lease, did not have a key, and he believed that there was nothing belonging to Knight in his residence. On the night of the incident, the man told police that Knight knocked on his door and asked to enter to retrieve a bag that he had left behind.

The charges alleged that after the tenant told Knight that he did not leave a bag, Knight was accused of kicking in the door and forcing his way into the apartment. The renter said that he then left to avoid a confrontation and returned after he saw Knight depart on a bicycle.

The criminal complaint says the man told police that Knight had rummaged through his belongings and damaged the apartment. The officer who responded to the call reported seeing a bathroom sink had been torn off the wall and there was damage to a door frame and a pair of glasses.

At the time of his arrest in February, Knight was wanted on an active arrest warrant for the alleged probation violation connected to a felony drug conviction in the Twin Cities area.

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