Authorities Said Clint Eldeen Was an Unpredictable Criminal, Which Had Them Concerned
An escaped convict was arrested in a Minnesota casino on Wednesday. The convict, Clint Berry Eldeen, had stolen a pizza delivery car in South Dakota, then used it to ride into Minnesota, where he robbed banks in Roseville and Richfield.
Eldeen, a 46-year old man, was serving a prison sentence related to check fraud, but he escaped from the minimum security unit in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. According to the South Dakota Department of Corrections, he was serving two sentences for “no account check”.
Clint Eldeen’s Previous Sentences
The first sentences was for 30 years, with 15 years suspended. The second sentence was consecutive with the first and was for 30 years, with 25 years suspended. In other words, Eldeen was serving 20 years in prison. His sentencing came in Lincoln County, South Dakota in 2000 and he was scheduled for release on December 15, 2021.
Last Friday evening around 7 pm, Eldeen escaped from the Sioux Falls prison. He stole the pizza delivery car, which presumably was delivering food to the prison staff. After leaving the penitentiary area, he robbed the Bremer Bank in Roseville on Sunday morning.
Video Helped Catch Eldeen
The Minnesota State Police released video of the bank robbery, along with a convenience store robbery in Lakeville. After the video was released, numerous tips were gathered by the police in the investigation. Based on those tips, Clint Eldeen was identified as the suspect in the robberies, so the manhunt for him intensified.
Two Richfield robberies attempts which took place on Tuesday are also being investigated as potential crimes by Eldeen. A Wells Fargo bank was robbed in Richfield, while a TCF Bank in Richfield was the target of a failed robbery attempt.
Arrested at Little Six Casino
At around 4 am on Wednesday, Clint Eldeen was arrested while on the grounds of the Little Six Casino in Prior Lake. Little Six Casino sits on the grounds of the Mystic Lake Casino. Eldeen was spotted by the casino’s security personnel, who recognized him from the surveillance videos shown by the state police.
Lt. Randy Hofstad with the Prior Lake Police Department said that police soon after approached Clint Eldeen, then arrested him for the prison break in South Dakota and alleged other crimes in Minnesota.
Little Six Casino Information
Because we do not feature Minnesota gambling too often on this website, a rundown of the Little Six Casino and Minnesota’s gaming industry is in order. According to its Casino City page, Little Six Casino is a Native American casino in Prior Lake, Minnesota. The casino has 25,000 square feet of gaming space, which holds 797 gaming machines and 8 table games. The table games offered are blackjack and poker. The casino, which sits on Sioux Trail Northwest, also has the Mystic Lake Hotel, a 586-room property. Two restaurants are located on the casino site.
Minnesota has 35 different casinos spread throughout 25 different communities. The state also has 2 racetracks: the Running Aces Harness Park in Columbus and Canterbury Park in Shakopee.
