A 37-year-old St. Paul man pleaded guilty today to invading and burglarizing a home on the Red Lake Indian Reservation.
Robert Joseph Downwind pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to first-degree burglary.
In a plea agreement, Downwind admitted he entered a residence by cutting the screen on an open window about 2 a.m. July 24, 2011. He also agreed that he intended to steal money and other items while the homeowner, whom he did not know, slept in her bedroom.
Court papers state that while he was inside the residence, the homeowner woke and confronted him. Downwind assaulted her, pushed her to the ground, and took her purse, which contained money and identification cards.
Downwind faces a maximum of 20 years in prison. His sentence will be determined at a future court hearing before District Court Chief Judge Michael J. Davis.
