A Duluth man who thought he was giving acquaintances a ride ended up being held at gunpoint, according to charges filed against three men accused of robbing him. Earlier that day, two masked men allegedly entered his house while he was away. Trequwan Nashon Scott, 24, Desmon Lenard Tillman, 20, and Trevon Jermaine Eaton, 25, now face felony charges tied to the Oct. 14 incident.
According to MN Crime, Scott and Tillman are each charged with first-degree burglary and first-degree aggravated robbery, while Eaton faces a single charge of first-degree aggravated robbery. The complaints were filed in St. Louis County District Court on Oct. 23. The outlet reports the victim left for work around 11:30 a.m. that day and finished a meeting at 12:30 p.m., at which point three men approached and asked him for a ride. He knew two of them.
An Armed Robbery Turns Violent
What started as a favor allegedly turned into an armed robbery once the men were in the car. Per the same account, the three men robbed the victim at gunpoint while he was driving, and the complaint states that Tillman held a gun to the victim's head during the struggle. The victim told investigators he believed one of the men in the back seat also had a weapon.
The confrontation escalated into a physical struggle, and the victim ultimately drove to an alley in the 1800 block of First Street in Duluth. The men then disabled the car by pulling out its keys, took a Glock handgun the victim kept under his seat, and ran off, the report states.
Home Surveillance Caught the Break-In
Earlier that day, before the armed robbery, the victim's house was reportedly burglarized. Home surveillance footage showed two masked men entering the Duluth house through a window at 11:54 a.m. that day, with one masked man opening the back door to let the second one inside, according to the charges. The pair left the house about six minutes later.
Investigators say the men took a Sig Sauer rifle, a Glock 23 handgun, designer shoes, clothing, a PlayStation 5 and a diamond necklace from bedrooms inside the home. The victim told police he discovered the burglary after returning home. Separately, footage from a nearby business reportedly showed three suspects running through an alley at 12:54 p.m. that day, shortly after the robbery.
Surveillance Video and a Search Warrant
The victim identified Tillman and Scott as the two men visible in his home's surveillance video, and investigators said the third suspect matched Eaton's physical description, the charges state. Investigators also identified two of the three suspects seen in the nearby business footage as Tillman and Scott.
A search warrant served at the home where Tillman and Scott were living turned up the stolen Jordan 4 shoes, according to the complaint. The charging documents also state that Scott told Eaton he could not be caught with any of the stolen items. Scott reportedly told investigators he knew the victim and called his own actions a stupid decision.
What the Charges Could Mean
Under Minnesota law, first-degree burglary can carry a sentence of up to 20 years in prison for someone who enters a building without consent intending to commit a crime, or who commits a crime once inside without consent. Under a separate statute from the Minnesota Revisor's Office, first-degree aggravated robbery requires committing a robbery while armed with a dangerous weapon or qualifying article, or inflicting bodily harm, and can bring up to 20 years in prison, a fine of as much as $35,000, or both.
The case will move through the Sixth Judicial District, where the St. Louis County Attorney's Office prosecutes felonies arising from Minnesota's largest county by area, a jurisdiction that stretches from Duluth to the Canadian border. Cases in that district are heard at courthouses in Duluth, Hibbing and Virginia.
A Separate Burglary Across Town
The Oct. 14 case wasn't the only home break-in Duluth police were investigating that day. Around the same time, officers responded to a burglary near N 47th Avenue West and West Sixth Street in West Duluth, where two men broke into a home and stole two guns along with other items, according to Fox 21. No one was home and no one was injured in that incident, and the suspects were last seen heading south on North 47th Avenue West. The Duluth Police Department has asked the public for help identifying those two suspects, and it is not clear from available reporting whether the two cases are connected.
