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Man charged for removing some of hundreds of storm sewer grates throughout St. Paul
and dropping them into the storm drains. Some or possibly all of the hundreds. He's admitted to some. Police don't know if he was responsible for all of them, or it some other(s) were also copy-cat doing this. So that's why I worded the subject line the way I did.
Kevin Michael Monahan, 34, was charged on Friday with five counts of first-degree damage to property.
Court records show that since early June, St. Paul has had several hundred storm sewer grates removed and then dropped into storm sewer drains, which has totaled the city over $20,000.
. . . At about 9:45 a.m., a woman reported that while she was getting into her car, she fell into a sewer drain that was missing a grate on Ninth near Sibley Street, according to court records. ((also be careful stepping out of your car -Progree))
Authorities obtained video showing a man removing multiple grates and dropping them into drains.
Court documents note that on Aug. 7, officers saw the man outside the Higher Ground shelter, and he was wearing the same clothing seen in the video. He was identified as Monahan and taken into custody by St. Paul police.
In an interview, Monahan said he removed the grates because they were “dirty and needed to be cleaned out.” He stated that he was trying to help, but admitted no one gave him permission. ((who knows if this is a real or made-up reason, but no matter what the real reason, this person is clearly an, uh, non-neurotypical person))
Court records show that since early June, St. Paul has had several hundred storm sewer grates removed and then dropped into storm sewer drains, which has totaled the city over $20,000.
. . . At about 9:45 a.m., a woman reported that while she was getting into her car, she fell into a sewer drain that was missing a grate on Ninth near Sibley Street, according to court records. ((also be careful stepping out of your car -Progree))
Authorities obtained video showing a man removing multiple grates and dropping them into drains.
Court documents note that on Aug. 7, officers saw the man outside the Higher Ground shelter, and he was wearing the same clothing seen in the video. He was identified as Monahan and taken into custody by St. Paul police.
In an interview, Monahan said he removed the grates because they were “dirty and needed to be cleaned out.” He stated that he was trying to help, but admitted no one gave him permission. ((who knows if this is a real or made-up reason, but no matter what the real reason, this person is clearly an, uh, non-neurotypical person))
If you see someone actively removing a storm drain grate, call 911 to report the incident to St. Paul police.
To report a missing grate or other storm drain damage, email St. Paul Public Works at publicworksinfo@stpaul.gov.
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I've seen at least three "missing storm drain grates dropped down sewer" stories before this over the last 3 weeks or so, very irritating and senseless and disturbing. I don't remember seeing any stories about injuries, thankfully. Anyway, hopefully this will stop now. This is hazardous too to bicyclists, or pedestrians walking along the side of the road because of no sidewalk.
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