Slain St. Paul mother’s last words were about daughter, charges say

Charging documents have revealed what happened in the moments before St. Paul mother Sarah Anne Wierstad was killed in her home, after interrupting a burglary.

Two separate criminal complaints said Bell, along with 26-year-old Isiah Harper, burglarized Wierstad’s St. Paul home October 18.

According to the criminal complaint, Harper told police he, 25-year-old Alvin Rudolph Bell and another man only referred to as A.B. randomly robbed the victim’s apartment at 671 Bedford Street around 8 p.m.

In an interview with police, he acknowledged he was inside Wierstad’s house with Bell and another man who is listed in the complaint as AB.

As he stood outside, Harper said he saw the back light come on and Wierstad appear.

Harper said he heard AB fire four to five shots, before running back and getting into the vehicle. “Stop following us.” Seconds later, after trying to reason with the men by telling them that her daughter was on the way home, Wierstad was fatally shot.

“The female asked if she could have her phone”. Bell was also arrested and charged with second degree murder.

The case remains under investigation, and it’s still unclear who shot Wierstad, said Erica Schumacher, director of strategic initiatives and community relations for the county attorney’s office. “AB then ran back into the vehicle”.

Investigators say that after authorities arrested Harper, he admitted to being present at the burglary at Wierstad’s home, but gave several different accounts of the incident. She said her daughter was on the way.

The man named “AB” is still being sought by police.

Police say they found Bell’s fingerprints on Wierstad’s windows, and surveillance footage later showed him using her credit card at a gas station.