UPDATE: Details in Rochester porch piracy, car break-in cases
Cherish Portillo, 41, Rochester (left) and Jay Ernst, 37, homeless (right) were arrested for allegedly stealing packages from doorsteps and possessing methamphetamine (Background: MGN, mugshot images courtesy of Olmsted County Adult Detention Center).
(ABC 6 News) – Rochester police took 41-year-old Cherish Portillo of Rochester and 37-year-old Jay Ernst into custody Dec. 17, on suspicion of mail theft and methamphetamine possession.
Portillo and Ernst appeared in Olmsted County Court Thursday, Dec. 19, on mail theft and drug charges.
They also face charges related to an early September car break-in.
September theft case
According to court documents, on Sept. 11, a community service officer went to Harvest Square Place NW and said someone had broken into a car and taken a leather wallet, two people’s ID cards, a gym bag, a track suit, Adidas brand shoes and pants, a gold chain valued at $600, an iPhone 13, and $20 in small change.
The car had been parked in a driveway, and the owners found the rear driver’s side window broken when they went out that morning.
Rochester police took a sample of blood found on the surface of the door and on the seat.
A tracking app showed the iPhone at an address on Elton Hills Court in NW Rochester, where a man living there agreed to ask around, then returned the phone to police.
The man said Ernst and Portillo had given him the phone and worked for Lime Scooters.
Rochester police later determined that Ernst and Portillo had picked up scooters near Harvest Square Place NW on the night of the theft.
The MN BCA also allegedly indicated that the blood swaps matched Ernst, who is part of the Minnesota Convicted Offender DNA database.
Ernst was convicted of one count of 1st-degree attempted murder after allegedly attempting to end his own life and those of two children in 2015. Ernst filed an Alford plea and received a downward dispositional sentence of 86 months (about 7 years) at the MN Correctional Facility in St. Cloud.
Portillo and Ernst each face a charge of felony theft, a charge of tampering with a motor vehicle, and a charge of 4th-degree property damage.
December thefts
On Dec. 17, police received a call about two people stealing packages from doorsteps around 7th Street NW and Lakeridge Drive NW.
The caller told police the suspects were using a black wagon to transport the parcels to a car they were both riding in, and later said he saw the man opening packages in the backseat.
The caller gave police the car’s license plate.
According to court documents, Rochester police located the car and suspects, patted the two down, and searched the vehicle, but did not find any packages.
Both denied taking any packages from porches.
However, police located a small vial that field-tested positive for meth, according to court documents.
Court documents allege that Portillo asked Ernst if he would take the fall for the drugs again, “stating that she had done so multiple times before.”
Police also found three BB guns — one replica of a Glock 19, one replica of a Glock 17, and one replica Sig MPX. The Glock 19 BB gun was in a black lockbox next to three packages of methamphetamine weighing 26.5 grams in total, according to court documents.
Police then received Ring Doorbell footage showing Ernst hauling the wagon along the road, leaving it for short time, then returning to it with a package that was not located in the search.
Ernst and Portillo each face a charge of 2nd-degree drug possession and a charge of mail theft.
Portillo and Ernst are scheduled to appear in court again Jan. 8, 2025.
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(ABC 6 News) – Two suspected porch pirates were arrested Tuesday in Rochester, a press release from Rochester Police Department (RPD) said.
Around 1:20 p.m., RPD responded to a report of people taking packages from doorsteps near 7th St. NW and Lakeridge Dr. NW.
According to RPD, witnesses gave detailed descriptions of the suspects and the vehicles they were.
Later, officers reportedly found the suspects and the vehicle in a nearby parking lot. After searching it, officers found methamphetamine, RPD said.
The suspects were identified by authorities as 41-year-old Cherish Portillo of Rochester and 37-year-old Jay Ernst, who is homeless.
Both suspects face felony charges for controlled substance and mail theft, according to RPD.