Stabbing Suspect Apprehended After Fleeing Aitkin County
The suspect, Matthew Dean Liimatainen, in a recent booking photo via Crow Wing County Jail
State Patrol flight path on southwest Lake Mille Lacs. via ADSB
Authorities were searching for a 33-year-old man wanted for attempted murder after a stabbing Wednesday morning in Aitkin.
Law enforcement agencies across the state—including the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension and Tribal police—were assisting in the search.
The suspect, Matthew Dean Liimatainen. via Facebook
The Aitkin County Sheriff’s Office identified the suspect as Matthew Dean Liimatainen, 33, of Aitkin. He fled the scene in a stolen 2022 black Ford F-150 with Minnesota plates JHR-837 and a large Cardinal sticker in the rear window.
UPDATE: Formal charges have been filed > Read More
Authorities warned that Liimatainen was armed and potentially dangerous.
The stabbing happened just before 11 a.m. on the 500 block of 1st St. NW. Emergency radio traffic indicated the victim suffered potentially life-threatening injuries and was transported to the hospital.
Shortly after the attack, officers in the area of 230th Lane and 435th Avenue in Hazelton Township reported visible signs a vehicle went into a ditch before correcting and authorities believed it may be connected to the suspect.
Around noon, State Patrol’s Trooper 4 aircraft was deployed to search the southwest portion of Lake Mille Lacs, but cleared from the area by 12:53 p.m. Around the same time, authorities discovered that Liimatainen had been driving another vehicle earlier that morning, which was later found abandoned, per initial law enforcement radio dispatches.
A team from the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension was dispatched to assist with the investigation.
State court records show Liimatainen has an extensive criminal history, including convictions for first-degree arson, felony theft, credit card fraud, assault, fleeing police, felon in possession of a firearm, escape from custody and violations of no-contact orders.
No further details on a possible motive or any connection between him and the victim have been released yet.
UPDATE | 3:15 p.m. Wednesday
The stolen F-150 was found occupied in White Bear Lake, just south of 4th St. & Northwest Ave. Officers moved in with a shield and took a suspect into custody who matched the description of the Aitkin County stabbing suspect, per police radio dispatches just before 3:10 p.m.
Aitkin PD confirms the vehicle was located by the Ramsey County Sheriff's Department in White Bear Township around 3 p.m. Shortly after locating the vehicle, Liimatainen was apprehended by deputies and will be booked into the Aitkin County Jail. The stabbing victim, a 41-year-old woman from Aitkin, was transported to Riverwood Health Care Center and air-lifted to Hennepin County Medical Center for treatment of life-threatening injuries, police said.
> See more of our latest coverage
UPDATE: Formal charges have been filed > Read More