Held at gunpoint, victims ask robber: 'Are you hungry?'
Chuck Haga, Star Tribune
December 22, 2004 ROBBED1222



Herb Bloomquist had just brought firewood into the house when a young man stepped through the front door.

"That's not all that uncommon," said Bloomquist, who lives a few miles south of Motley, Minn., with his wife, Debbie, and their 5-year-old daughter, Anna. "We're a pretty open community," he said.

"But he was holding a gun."

As the man ordered them to the floor, bound them and stole their money, the Bloomquists had a singular response.

"My wife kept offering to feed him," Herb Bloomquist said.

"She asked him, 'What do you need? How can we help you? Are you hungry? Can I fix you a meal?'

"We decided that's the Scandinavian default mode," he said, chuckling. " 'You're in trouble, so we'll feed you.' "

Luke Daniel Johnson, 23, from nearby Staples, was in a Brainerd hospital Tuesday recovering from a gunshot wound he suffered as he tried to flee authorities who wanted to question him about the robbery, which happened Friday.

Bloomquist, head of a church group that has a youth camp on Lake Shamineau, wants to talk again with Johnson, too.

"I hope and pray we have an opportunity to continue this relationship we've started," he said. "If we can get him out of whatever he's stuck in, whatever made him do this, he won't do it again. We're going to tell him everything we know about Jesus."

Johnson, who has not been charged, was flown to St. Joseph's Medical Center in Brainerd Monday after a police chase across Cass and Wadena counties.

The chase ended when the suspect drove onto a field in Cass County, stepped from the pickup truck he was driving and approached officers while holding a gun. He was shot by one of the pursuing officers. "He suffered at least one gunshot wound," Cass County Sheriff Randy Fisher said.

A spokesman at St. Joseph's said Tuesday that he could not release any information on Johnson's condition.

"He hasn't been formally charged and the [robbery] complaint hasn't been drafted yet," Morrison County Sheriff Michel Wetzel said. "Right now, he's arrested for fleeing in Cass County, and Wadena County also has a probable-cause hold for a separate burglary. So we're not in any big hurry."

The Bloomquists' truck had been found abandoned in Alexandria, but another truck was stolen there and spotted Monday near Pequot Lakes by an off-duty deputy, Fisher said.

"He followed him in his private vehicle, using his cell phone to coordinate" with other officers.

Officers from 12 jurisdictions were involved in the 45-minute chase, which extended into Wadena County and back to Cass and ended about 5 p.m. Monday, Fisher said. He wouldn't identify the officer who shot the suspect because the incident remains under investigation. No officers were hurt.

Of the Bloomquists' concern for the suspect, Fisher said: "You have to admire people who are willing to turn the other cheek like that."

Herb Bloomquist said it took several seconds before he and his wife grasped what was happening.

"He kept telling us to get on the floor," he said. "He must have thought we were the dumbest people in the world because we just stood there.

The robber wanted money.

"Between the two of us, we had $26," Bloomquist said. "He could have picked a better house. We work for a nonprofit."

The man cut their phone line before he left in their pickup.

"We untied ourselves as soon as we heard the truck leave," Bloomquist said. "We jumped in another vehicle, drove to the camp and called police."

Herb Bloomquist said that he and his wife lock their doors now because of the robbery.

"But if someone comes to the door, what do you do?" he asked. "You're going to open it and find out what they need."

Authorities have told him that they expect the suspect to recover from his wounds and that they want to talk with him then. If he is tried for armed robbery and convicted, Herb Bloomquist said, "There's going to be some prison time, and he's going to need somebody to stay in contact with."






hmm, not sure which one scares me more though!

Is this a Garrison Keillor sketch?

--PunkDavid

Actually, I am not scared by this story. These two victims are what Christians are SUPPOSED to be like: kind, generous, forgiving, and peaceful.

If all Christians were like this, we would not be in the mess we are in.

oh i totally agree. but if i were the guy who robbed them id be freaked out...

"dude i just robbed yo ass and threatened to kill you, why you bein so nice to me"

and run out scared....

I think I just peed my pants a little bit.

personally, i don't think it's funny at all. i think it's rather sad that people would find it weird or laughable for two persons to be so kind and forgiving. yeah, maybe that quote sounded a bit weird. But i'll tell you what...if i was the guy with the gun pointing it toward a couple and that they would then offer me a place at their table and EVEN want to see me again to offer me their help later on, i think i'd just fall in tears.

Agreed 100%. It really was just that quote that I find funny, just picturing an elderly couple sitting some punk kid down to tell him everything they know about Jesus.

This reminds me of the movie "Trapped in Paradise".

i've never been so proud to be a lifelong minnesotan. in fact, i just drove through cass county earlier tonight.

Is that the one where he robs the house and then they help him escape? Its set in Christmas time..can't remember the actors name.

Its with Nicholas Cage and Dana Carvey, they find this defenseless bank that is in this bucolic and benign community, rob it, then proceed to get lost in a blizzard and stuck in the town. The residents dont realize who robbed them and end up taking them in, shennanigans ensue, its worth watching (especially around Christmas, more so if you are from Minnesota).

You're thinking of 'The Ref' with Dennis Leary. Same premise though, and I think that one takes place during Christmas as well.

how cold is it up norht? im going up to lutsen next week to go skiing !

Ugh,

Here in Duluth yesterday we had air temp below zero and wind chill I believe in the negative 30s.

You're here early today.

It makes sense though, since you are posting from elsewhere, as an IP check verified.

I think I'd go crazy living in a Midwest winter.

thats typical christians for you "jesus told him to rob us"

That is true. It was Duluth yesterday, today Eau Claire (a bit south). It is warmer here though...around 0.

I'd love to live in the Rockys again!

Maybe Idaho???

Heh heh heh

Sunbathing in Vernon Hills, IL!! 15 degrees, -1 windchill.

Looking forward to a high of 7 in Milwaukee for xmas eve. No snow, no clouds even. I guess if I want a white Christmas I'll have to turn on a hose.

--PunkDavid