Charges: Southeast Minnesota Teen Stole Two Vehicles, Fled Deputies Multiple Times

LeRoy, MN (KROC-AM News)- A southeast Minnesota man is facing charges in two cases for fleeing law enforcement in two counties multiple times. 

See Also: Guilty Plea Entered in Rochester Mother's Day Home Invasion 

Both criminal complaints were filed in Olmsted and Mower Counties on Friday. He is currently being held in Mower County, where he is facing a longer list of charges. 

In all he is accused of fleeing law enforcement four different times and stealing two vehicles. 

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Southeast MN Teen Accused of Stealing Two Vehicles, Fleeing Law Enforcement Multiple Times

18-year-old Andrew Carl Leff of LeRoy is charged with motor vehicle theft and felony fleeing in Olmsted County. 

He is charged with two counts of felony fleeing and one count each of second-degree burglary and motor vehicle theft in Mower County. Leff is also facing multiple misdemeanor charges in Mower County. 

The ordeal began on the morning of November 17, when an Olmsted County Sheriff’s deputy responded to a vehicle theft in Stewartville. 

The complaint says the deputy then spotted Leff driving the vehicle that was reported stolen and followed him to the Stewartville Taco Bell parking lot, where law enforcement attempted to box the stolen vehicle in. 

Leff then drove into a nearby field. Deputies followed as Leff eventually returned to southbound Hwy. 63 and sped through downtown Stewartville, the charges say. 

Deputies terminated the pursuit due to public safety concerns and alerted Mower County authorities to the fleeing suspect, the complaint says. 

Charges: Teen Man Fled Mower County Deputies Four Times, Stole Vehicle from City of LeRoy

Mower County deputies then responded to a hit and run report at the Southeast Minnesota Education Consortium east of Austin involving the vehicle Leff allegedly stole. 

Deputies later found Leff two times after responding to the hit and run. Leff fled from deputies in both incidents, reaching speeds over 100mph in the first incident, according to the Mower County complaint. 

Around 8:30 on the evening of the 17th, Mower County deputies learned Olmsted County authorities were in pursuit of a pick-up truck registered to the City of LeRoy that had been reported stolen from the city’s shop. 

Authorities suspect Leff of stealing the pick-up, the complaint says. A Mower County deputy came upon the vehicle traveling on Hwy. 63. 

Leff refused to stop after the deputy activated his emergency lights and drove to Spring Valley before fleeing towards the Iowa border. The deputy terminated the pursuit, the charges say. 

The State Patrol reported recovering the stolen pick-up abandoned in a hayfield about 90 minutes later. Law enforcement searched for Leff but could not find him. 

Shortly before 11:00 the next morning, deputies responded to the report of Leff being seen in LeRoy wearing a ski mask. 

Leff fled once deputies saw him, eventually leading a deputy on a foot pursuit through the LeRoy Historical society. Leff then surrendered and was held at gunpoint until backup could arrive, the complaint says. 

Leff’s conditional bail has been set at $50,000 in the Mower County case. A first court appearance in the Olmsted County case has not yet been set.