By Patrick Tepoorten

Two bold daylight burglaries occurred in Chisago County over the last two weeks and both ended with the apprehension of suspects, through the cooperation of multiple jurisdictions.

On June 17, just before 8 a.m., Michael Cornelius Ritchie, 23, of Harris, and Jennifer Ruth Klenz, 26, of Cambridge, entered the home of Andrew Douglas Steaveís father at 6044 373rd Street in North Branch.

Steave, 25, and a friend, Justin Phillip Murphy, 24, had spent the night at the house after a night on the town the previous evening.

Upon entering, Ritchie and Klenz went downstairs and, according to Lt. Steve Forner of the North Branch Police Department, Ritchie began assaulting Murphy as he slept. Steave, who was sleeping in the same room, awoke to the commotion, fled past Ritchie and Klenz to a neighborís and called 911.

Ritchie and Klenz, who had stolen Murphyís wallet following the assault, were gone when Steave returned, but his vehicle description led to the arrest of Klenz by the Cambridge Police Department just a short time later. After initially denying any involvement, Klenz shortly admitted to her part in the crime and stated she had dropped Ritchie off at a residence prior to being pulled over.

Law enforcement was able to determine where Ritchie had been left and apprehended him without incident. Ritchie told officers that he and Krenz had entered the residence because they thought Murphy and Steave had stolen his vehicle the previous night. There is no evidence to suggest that is the case.

Because Ritchie assaulted Murphy and then took his billfold, he is facing first degree assault charges as well as aggravated robbery, on top of first degree burglary charges. Klenzís case is being reviewed by the county attorneyís office for possible charges.

On June 16 two men, Eric Jason Yankovec, 28, of Little Canada, and Jeffrey Cole Patterson, 18, of St. Paul, kicked in the door of a Wyoming Township residence at 10:30 in the morning, according to Chisago County Sheriff Todd Rivard.

Hearing the commotion from upstairs, resident Jan Suzanne Banta Flowers, 41, dialed 911 to report that someone was in her house.

Deputies, assisted by Forest Lake police officers, closed in on the house and noticed a white four-door car coming out of the area. Wyoming, Forest Lake, Lakes Area, and the Sheriffís office flooded the area, pulling over cars that matched the description, but it would be St. Paul police that would apprehend the suspects as part of a routine traffic stop. Stolen items from the Wyoming Township residence were discovered in the car and the two men were taken into custody.

Evidence has also linked the two suspects to two other burglaries in Wyoming Twsp., that occurred on the same day.

Patterson is facing felony, first degree burglary charges, two counts of second degree burglary, and felony vehicle theft, over $2,500. Yankovec is facing first degree burglary charges and two counts of second degree burglary as well.