SPPD: Body Found In North End Sunday Was Assaulted Saturday

SAINT PAUL, MN —Saint Paul Police Department homicide investigators determined Tuesday that the woman found dead Sunday in the city's North End neighborhood actually had been assaulted the day before in Brooklyn Park, according to the SPPD.

As a result, the SPPD announced the Brooklyn Park Police Department would be taking the lead in the investigation.

Before passing off the investigation, the SPPD had not announced the victim's identity, and the department had not made any arrests in the case. Though SPPD investigators said they did not believe the murder had been a random act.

According to reports, the woman's body was discovered Sunday in the basement of a townhouse in the 1500 block of Jackson Street. Initially, Saint Paul Fire Department paramedics had been called to the location because of a reported drug overdose. At approximately 2 p.m., SPPD officers were called to assist.

Officers determined the deceased had been the victim of an assault, and they called in the department's Homicide and Forensic Services unit. Investigators conducted a search for evidence and interviewed multiple people who had been in the house when paramedics and police arrived.

On Monday, the Ramsey County Medical Examiner's Office performed an autopsy and officially classified the death as a homicide.