Two charged in Hastings auto thefts after the keys were taken from an overnight drop box

Hastings Police have charged Michael Dennis Jerry, 43, Cottage Grove, and Samantha Mary Helen Siples, 23, Burnsville, with two counts of theft (motor vehicle use without consent) in connection with the April 1 theft of two vehicles from an auto repair shop in Hastings. Two customers had left their vehicles at the auto shop overnight. When the shop owner arrived the following morning, he discovered that someone had broken off the key drop box lock and that two vehicles were missing.

Minneapolis Police recovered one of the vehicles and the second one was located in St. Paul Park.

During the investigation, officers talked to many people who indicated they were in a motel room with Jerry and Siples on the evening of April 1. The hotel is located across the street from the auto repair shop. One individual told the officers that Jerry left the room, apparently angry that Siples was flirting with some other man. When he returned, Jerry threw a set of car keys at her and wished her a “Happy Birthday,” stating he had gotten her a $30,000 present. Jerry, Siples and the third party went outside where the two vehicles were parked. The three of them left Hastings in the vehicles.

Officers located Jerry, who refused to give a Mirandized statement. When they located Siples, she agreed to give one and said she and Jerry were dropped off in Hastings with no money or car. She gave many different accounts of what had occurred that evening. She denied stealing the vehicles and initially denied knowing they were stolen.

Tags: 3 crime and courts, news, hastings, minnesota, spiral, local