Recently in Local News Category

A Shoreview woman plead guilty of embezzling nearly $400,000 from her employer in a Minneapolis federal court on Monday, the Star Tribune reported.

Kimberly D. Swenson, 38, who worked as a client services specialist for Minneapolis-based Allianz Life Insurance Co., admitted that she embezzled money from the company from 2008 through 2010, according to the Star Tribune.

Swenson faces up to 20 years in prison after pleading guilty to one count of mail fraud. The sentencing date has yet to be scheduled, according to the Pioneer Press.

A nurse rescued a 14-year-old boy at the bottom of a Bloomington hotel pool on Thursday, according to the Star Tribune.

The nurse, who asked that her name not be released, performed CPR after pulling the boy out of the water. The boy, who was not breathing but did have a pulse at the time of the incident, was conscious and talking when he was taken to Fairview Southdale Hospital in Edina for observation, the Star Tribune reported.

The boy was said to be underwater for a few minutes at the Bloomington Sheraton until the nurse, who happened to be in the pool area, pulled him out, according to Kare11.com.

Police said no further investigation is needed and what happened was an accident, Kare11.com reported.

A knife brought by a student was discovered at a Cold Spring middle school on Wednesday, according to SCTimes.com.

This knife, which was reported to Principal Cheryl Schmidt by other students, marks the second weapon found at the Racori middle school since April 11, SCTimes.com reported.

The student, who's name and grade were not released, was identified as a female student, according to the Star Tribune.

A local police officer assigned to Rocori Public Schools was placed on paid administrative leave after a loaded handgun and ammuniton was brought by a seventh-grader to the middle school on April 11. The officer's leave was based on overall performance, officials said, according to the Star Tribune.

Rocori High School had a shooting in 2003, which left two students dead and has kept the shooter in prison, the Star Tribune reported.

Two 14-year-old girls were found dead of apparent suicides in Island Lake Township on Saturday, the Star Tribune reported.

Paige Moravetz and Haylee Fentress, both of Lynd, Minn. and 8th graders at Marshall Middle School, believed to have taken their own lives early Saturday morning, according to ABC KSFY.com.

An investigation will continue but authorities suspect no foul play occurred in their deaths, the Star Tribune reported.

Gov. Mark Dayton was at the University Club in St. Paul when he bumped into Minnesota Vikings owner Zygi Wilf on Thursday night, the MinnPost.com reported

Wilf was there to chat with lawmakers and Dayton had an unrelated meeting when an unplanned 10-minute conversation took place between the two, the Star Tribune reported.

Dayton said Wilf seemed "hopeful and I said I was hopeful (a new Vikings stadium) would be passed through the legislative process this session," according to the Star Tribune.

Nothing specific was discussed since the meeting was not planned, Dayton said, the Star Tribune reported.

A mother and her five children safely escaped blazing flames from their house in St. Paul on Wednesday, according to the Star Tribune.

A 7-year-old girl said sparks set her bed on fire as she was plugging in an electric heater. The only one injured, the girl was treated with a small burn on her finger by paramedics, according to the Pioneer Press.

Tik Soukchaleum, the children's father who was just returning from work, attempted to extinguish the flames himself but failed. Soukchaleum also escaped safely, the Pioneer Press reported.

An estimated $100,000 of damage was done to the $114,000 home. Another $20,000 of damage was done to the contents, the Star Tribune reported.

An investigation is taking place to determine what officially caused the fire, the Pioneer Press reported.

The skeletal remains of a body were found on Friday in a Brooklyn Park wooded area, CBS Minnesota.com reported.

The remains, which police say have been there for a long time, were discovered on Friday afternoon by a person walking by in the southern part of Brookdale Park, the Star Tribune reported.

The investigation by police, the Hennepin County Medical Examiner, and Hennepin County Crime Lab will continue. More information should be released next week, according to CBS Minnesota.com.

Although it has not been officially determined that the remains are human, police say they are also going to investigate the area to see if anyone has been reported missing, according to the Star Tribune.

A Brooklyn Park grocery store employee killed himself and two other employees on Friday night, according to My Fox 9.com.

Abigail M. Fedeli, 20, who was shot in the neck and died on the scene, and Michael Habte, 22, who died later at North Memorial Medical Center, were shot in the break room of Festival Foods at 8535 Edinburgh Center Drive by another employee who's name has not yet been released, My Fox 9.com reported.

The shooter, who was an ex-acquaintance of Fedeli, was apparently fueled by jealousy when he confronted the two victims and shot them, the Star Tribune reported.

He then fled to Minneapolis where authorities closed in on him before he shot himself near West River Parkway, according to the Star Tribune.

All three had been working at the store for a while. Fedeli and Habte were on the clock when they were killed, but the shooter was not, the Star Tribune reported.

A St. Paul man was struck by a train and seriously injured in the North End neighborhood on Sunday, according to the Star Tribune.

Jason Moreau, 34, was taken to Regions Hospital after being hit while walking the tracks near N. Oxford Street and W. Jessamine Ave. just after 1 a.m., the Star Tribune reported.

The details of the incident aren't exactly clear, police officials said, the Pioneer Press reported.

Moreau's condition was not available on Sunday afternoon, according to the Pioneer Press.

Nearly 55,000 pounds of frozen, raw turkey burgers that might be contaminated with Salmonella were recalled by Jennie-O Turkey Store of Willmar on Saturday, according to the Echo Press.

Further raw turkey products still might be recalled while the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service continues its investigation of illnesses linked to the recall from turkey processing company, the Echo Press reported.

The products on recall, which were only sold at Sam's Club and packaged on Nov. 23, includes 4-pound boxes containing 12 individually wrapped burgers of Jennie-O's "All Natural Turkey Burgers with seasonings Lean White Meat." The identifying lot codes of the packages are "32710" through "32780," and the use-by date is Dec. 23. 2011, the Star Tribune reported.

A total of 12 people from 10 different states have become ill within the last four months, according to the Star Tribune.

Consumers can return the products at Sam's Club for a refund, Jennie-O said, the Star Tribune reported.