A 40-year-old man is facing felony charges after investigators say he broke into a Brainerd apartment, destroyed property and threatened responding officers.
The incident happened around 9:30 p.m. Friday, Jan. 30, at an apartment building on the North 8th Street block in Brainerd.
Nathaniel Donald Brimson, of Baxter, is charged with second-degree burglary of a dwelling, two counts of threats of violence, first-degree property damage and gross misdemeanor obstruction of legal process with force, according to a criminal complaint filed in Crow Wing County District Court.
According to the complaint, officers were dispatched after a tenant reported hearing glass breaking and a man yelling inside a neighbor’s apartment. The caller told dispatch she did not know whether the woman who lived in the unit was inside and said she did not believe the man was supposed to be there.
Officers arriving at the building reported hearing a man yelling and loud crashing sounds coming from inside the apartment. Police knocked several times and announced their presence. Investigators say the man inside began shouting profanities, racial slurs and threats, including yelling, “You want to get gangster f***ed up?”
Seconds later, authorities say the apartment door flew open and the man rushed outside while yelling, pushing a storm door outward toward an officer. Police identified the man as Brimson. Investigators say he turned toward the officer, clenched his fists, took a fighting stance and walked toward him. An officer pushed Brimson backward while keeping his handgun aimed at him as another officer tackled Brimson to the ground. Police say Brimson was noncompliant as officers took him into custody and continued yelling profanities.
Investigators say Brimson made additional threats after being handcuffed, including telling officers, “I’m about to knock you the f*** out, b****.” Officers assisted him to his feet and searched him. Police say Brimson claimed he lived at the apartment and said “his girl” would be home soon. When asked who he meant, investigators say he gave the first name of the apartment resident.
The woman told police she believed Brimson entered her apartment through a bathroom entry door that she believed had been left unlocked. She also told investigators she received an estimated 300 Snapchat messages after she left, describing them as a mix of derogatory messages and threats. Screenshots reviewed by officers allegedly included messages stating, “die b****,” “I’m going to torture and r*pe all of you,” “U ain’t s*** to me, nothing, I’m going to kill you,” and “I’ll kill you I swear,” along with other profanities and derogatory names. Investigators noted the messages came from an account labeled with a different contact name but displayed a photo of Brimson.
After the call, an officer returned to the apartment and checked the bathroom door, reporting it was unlocked. Investigators also reported finding items believed to belong to Brimson inside the apartment, including a jacket and boots an officer said he had previously seen Brimson wearing during earlier encounters. Police also reported locating a cellphone believed to belong to Brimson that was smashed and no longer had a screen.
Court records show Brimson has multiple prior convictions, including a felony harassment restraining order violation in Morrison County in 2024 tied to a 2023 incident. He was also convicted in 2024 of gross misdemeanor obstructing legal process with force in Morrison County stemming from an April 2023 case involving a report that he was on Walgreen’s property after being served a trespass notice.
Records also show Brimson was convicted of felony threats of violence in Morrison County in 2020. In Crow Wing County, he was convicted in 2023 of misdemeanor disorderly conduct tied to a 2022 case. Morrison County records list multiple misdemeanor trespass convictions in 2021 and 2023, as well as a 2022 case in which a disorderly conduct charge was dismissed and a trespass count resulted in a conviction. Older records show a felony conviction in 2015 involving assault of a peace officer and a felony threats of violence conviction entered in 2018, along with a gross misdemeanor conviction for obstructing legal process with force in that same case.
If convicted in the Brainerd case, Brimson faces up to 10 years in prison on the burglary charge. Each threats of violence count and the first-degree property damage charge carries a maximum sentence of five years. The obstruction charge carries a maximum penalty of 364 days in jail.
