Charges filed against Red Wing men in Wal-Mart robbery

Formal charges were filed in Goodhue County District Court Monday against three men accused of robbing the Red Wing Wal-Mart, 295 S. Tyler Road, early Sunday morning.

Matthew Warren Schmidt, 20, no permanent address, faces one count of first-degree aggravated robbery. Dylan Timothy Hanson, 20, 725 Bluff St., faces one count of first-degree aggravated robbery; liability for crimes of another. Andrue David Landmark, 22, 280 Motel Ave., faces one count of first-degree aggravated robbery; liability for crimes of another and one count of fleeing a peace officer in a motor vehicle.

Red Wing Police received a report of an armed robbery at the store at 12:08 a.m. According to the three separate court complaints filed Monday, a man — later identified in the complaints as Schmidt — entered Wal-Mart through the grocery store entrance and held a gun against the jaw of an employee, demanding money.

The employee complied because “he feared for his life.”

Schmidt then ran outside, across the parking lot and got into a red Dodge pickup driven by Landmark, the complaints say. The vehicle fled the scene at a high rate of speed, catching the attention of a nearby Goodhue County Sheriff’s deputy.

The deputy and a Red Wing officer pursued the vehicle onto County Road 1 at speeds between 85 and 90 mph.

After about three miles, the vehicle went off the roadway and into a field. Officers found the pickup abandoned about a half mile off the road; a BB gun that looked like a handgun and clothing that may have been worn during the robbery were found in the vehicle.

Officers continued searching the scene and, at about 2:45 a.m., they noticed a flashlight in a nearby tree grove. They subsequently located and arrested Landmark and Schmidt. Schmidt was allegedly carrying a backpack containing $200 in one-dollar bills. The complaints state that the bills stolen from Wal-Mart were ones and fives.

In interviews with police, Landmark stated that he and Schmidt had been planning the robbery for about a week, the complaints say.

Hanson was apprehended as he was driving slowly near Wal-Mart. He told police that he had been a lookout in the store during the robbery, the complaints say.

The complaints also state that the suspects called 911 from the Wal-Mart parking lot just before the robbery to report gunshots in the east side of town. It was a “bogus shooting complaint in an attempt to get officers far away from Wal-Mart,” the complaints state.

If convicted, each man could face up to 20 years in prison and a $35,000 fine. Schmidt will make his first appearance in court May 4. Hanson and Landmark will appear May 18.

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