St. Paul pub broken into more than a dozen times, pub owner calls for harsher penalties

ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - The owner of a well-known St. Paul pub says he’s reached his breaking point after another costly break-in.

Break-in at The Gnome Pub highlights ongoing struggles

What we know:

Surveillance footage shows two people breaking into The Gnome Pub just after 4 a.m. on Sunday. Owner Brian Ingram says the thieves took $1,300 in cash, but the damage left behind is far more expensive.

"For us, it's not an insurance claim. It's a call to the bank to say, ‘I need a $20,000 loan so I can replace all of this damage,’" said Brian Ingram, the owner of The Gnome Pub.

Ingram says this is not an isolated event. He’s dealt with more than a dozen break-ins at the pub over the past five years.

St. Paul Police call logs show police have been called to the address for theft nearly two dozen times.

Ingram says he has 22 surveillance cameras at the Gnome, and he’s updated office doors to have multiple locks. The upgrades, though, haven’t kept criminals out.

"It's just heartbreaking," said Ingram.

Surveillance video shows the latest intruders carrying one office safe out of the building, and it shows them using a saw to cut a hole in another inside.

The toll on small business owners

What they're saying:

Ingram says the repeated break-ins are taking a heavy toll, both financially and emotionally.

He says he’s received several letters from the Ramsey County Attorney’s Office over the years, including one after a court found a previous suspect mentally unfit to stand trial. The letter said the case was dismissed "in the best interest of justice."

"Well, it's not justice for me. It's not justice our employees," said Ingram.

He’s now calling for harsher penalties for those responsible, saying the cost of break-ins shouldn’t just become part of the cost of doing business.

"It's not good for business to talk about this. Well, if we don't start talking about it now, when do we start talking it?" said Ingram.

The other side:

The Ramsey County Attorney’s Office says that in the last five years, law enforcement has forwarded two cases from The Gnome Pub to them for charging, and the county attorney did charge both cases. The office declined to give an interview for this story.

Ingram says talking about these issues is difficult, but he feels it’s necessary to push for change and protect his business and employees.

Late Tuesday, St. Paul Police announced they had arrested 29-year-old Jason Lionell Wayne Gatrell while he was in the middle of robbing the Lexington nearby.

Investigators after his arrest identified him as one of the two people caught on video robbing the Gnome on Sunday.

The Ramsey County Attorney’s office charged Gatrell with six counts, including burglary and damage to property.