Rochester Man Accused of Knife Threats Pleads Guilty

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Rochester, MN (KROC-AM News) - A Rochester man is scheduled to be sentenced in March for his conviction on a felony terroristic threats charge.

23-year-old Damien Rose recently entered a guilty plea to the charge through a plea deal that resulted in the dismissal of three other felony threats charges and two misdemeanor theft charges.

Rose was arrested in September after he was accused of threatening three juveniles and a store clerk with a knife. According to the criminal complaint, the threats followed a shoplifting incident at the Apollo Superette during which a store employee saw him swipe a pair of sunglasses. The charges say the store clerk followed Rose in his vehicle and saw him stealing a backpack from the juveniles.

The charges alleged Rose brandished a knife and threatened to hurt the store clerk and later threatened the three juveniles after they chased after him in an attempt to retrieve the backpack. It was alleged that Rose told one of the juveniles he would slit his throat.

Court records indicate that, after his arrest, Rose admitted to an officer that he stole the sunglasses and had a knife in his possession, but denied issuing the threats.