Saint Paul police are investigating after a woman was found deceased on Tuesday, March 15, in Saint Paul’s Como Park neighborhood. Just before 9 a.m., officers were dispatched to a shipping warehouse on the 1700 block of Wynne Avenue for a report of a woman on fire.
When officers arrived, they located a woman in her 40s who was unresponsive and not breathing and appeared to have been badly burned. Officers secured the scene and called for Saint Paul Fire medics. Medics arrived and pronounced the woman dead at the scene. Homicide investigators responded, along with the Forensic Services Unit, who will process the scene for evidence.
The Ramsey County Medical Examiner’s Office also responded and took possession of the victim’s body.
Officers were able to quickly identify a suspect, who had been in a previous relationship with the victim. Officers shared information about his whereabouts with members of Bloomington Police Department, because the suspect resided in the city of Bloomington. Bloomington Police Department arrested the suspect this morning, a short distance from his home, which was on fire. Any questions about the fire and arrest, should be directed to the Bloomington Police Department.
Patrick Morris Simmons, 47, was transported to the Saint Paul Police Department headquarters, where he taken into custody without incident. He was interviewed by homicide investigators and will be booked at the Ramsey County jail for murder.
The woman’s identity, along with any updates in the case, will be released on the police department’s Twitter page, @sppdmn.
This is the 11th homicide this year in Saint Paul.