Rochester Laundromat Burglar Avoids Prison

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Rochester, MN (KROC-AM News) - A former Rochester man with a long criminal history has been given a stayed prison sentence and 5 years on probation for a conviction stemming from a laundromat burglary in Rochester last year.

45-year-old Mark Edward Smith, who now has a Red Wing address, earlier entered a guilty plea to a felony count of criminal damage to property. under the terms of a plea agreement, felony burglary, and theft charges were dropped.

The charges stemmed from a break-in at the Mega Coin Laundromat in Rochester on November 18th, 2022. The owner reported the theft of coins and approximately $7,500 in damage to a coin machine and a hole cut in a bathroom ceiling.

The criminal complaint says the business owner told deputies that the suspect had crawled through a hole in the bathroom ceiling to enter a storage room connected to the office. the owner identified Smith as the suspect after reviewing a video recorded by a security camera.

The court document says the security camera recorded Smith going into a bathroom and not emerging for 2 hours while a woman was doing laundry. Smith is then seen leaving the bathroom with a jug under his coat containing an estimated $250 worth of coins.

Smith's criminal history includes several burglary convictions in Olmsted County. He also has multiple felony convictions for drug possession.