State senator arrested after allegedly breaking into stepmother’s house to take her father’s ashes

DETROIT LAKES, Minn. (KVLY/Gray News) - A state senator in Minnesota was arrested after allegedly breaking into her stepmother’s house to take her father’s ashes, police said.

Authorities said they were called early Monday morning after a homeowner reported a burglary in progress.

The homeowner said the burglar, identified as 49-year-old Nicole Mitchell, a Democratic Minnesota state senator of District, ran to the basement.

When officers arrived, they found Mitchell, dressed in all-black with a black sock covering a flashlight. Through the investigation, police determined that she got into the home through a window of the basement.

While Mitchell was being detained, she said, “I was just trying to get a couple of my dad’s things because you wouldn’t talk to me anymore.”

Mitchell allegedly told police that she knew she did ‘something bad’ and that she ‘clearly, wasn’t good at this.’

She said that her dad recently passed away and that her stepmother ceased all communication with her and other family members, according to authorities.

The senator said she wanted some pictures, her father’s flannel shirt, his ashes and other items of sentimental value, KVLY reported.

Police found a backpack with two laptops, a cell phone, Mitchell’s Minnesota driver’s license and her Senate identification. Mitchell told officers that the laptops were hers.

However, police said when they got to the jail with Mitchell, they gave her one of the laptops to log into, but the victim’s name popped up on it.

Since the arrest, Mitchell has denied any wrongdoing.

“Like so many families, mine is dealing with the pain of watching a loved one decline due to Alzheimer’s and associated paranoia,” according to her Facebook post.

Mitchell has been charged with first-degree felony burglary.

Her bond was set at $40,000.

The judge ordered that Mitchell have no contact with the victim, and that she does not leave the state of Minnesota without written court approval, except for travel to Cass County, North Dakota.

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