207 Text Messages Later: Minneapolis Man Arrested for Allegedly Stalking Burnsville Woman

A Minneapolis man accused of stalking a woman at her boyfriend’s Burnsville home is in custody on an arrest warrant issued in January 2011.

Jeodaun Antoine Lee, 39, is charged with three felony counts of maintaining a pattern of harassing conduct, or stalking, each of which carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $20,000 fine. 

Lee, who was arrested Aug. 1 by the Hennepin County sheriff’s office, remains in the Dakota County Jail on a $60,000 bond.

According to the criminal complaint, the victim in the case contacted Burnsville police on Oct. 31, 2010, and reported that she was receiving numerous phone calls and text messages from Lee, her former boyfriend, in spite of a protection order against him that she obtained seven months earlier after Lee assaulted her.

The woman told police that she had received so many calls and texts from Lee that she no longer paid attention to the dates and times that they arrived.

The victim said she and her current boyfriend had spent most of Oct. 31 at his home in Burnsville, and that she ignored most of the calls and texts that Lee sent her that day. However, at midafternoon, her boyfriend answered one of the calls, and he and Lee argued heatedly, the woman said.

Lee called back that evening and told the woman’s current boyfriend, “I know you live in Burnsville. I’ll come out there and kick your [expletive],” according to the complaint.

The woman took her cell phone to the Burnsville police station, and officers took photos of about 50 text messages from Lee.

Police called Lee and asked him if he was aware of the protection order that prevented him from having contact with the victim. He acknowledged that he knew about the order and admitted violating it, but added, “It’s been hard for me to move on,” according to the complaint.

Lee told police that he had considered suicide in the wake of the breakup, but that he was “trying to put the pieces together,” the complaint says. Officers warned him against having any more contact with the victim, and Lee promised never to call her again, according to the complaint.

On Nov. 19, 2010, the victim came to police again and told them that Lee had continued to call her and send text messages in spite of his promise. She told police that she sometimes responded to Lee’s messages because she feared he was suicidal, but when she didn’t respond, he would resend the message multiple times.

An officer took photos of 270 text messages on the victim’s phone, and got copies of e-mail exchanges between Lee and the victim.

Police again called Lee, who admitted again to sending the victim “a lot” of messages, the complaint says. Lee told an officer that he was “getting square now” and had no plans to contact the victim again, according to the complaint.

In late December 2010, the victim contacted police again and said Lee was sending more text messages, including messages in which he threatened to commit suicide on Jan. 1, 2011.

Police tried repeatedly to contact Lee without success. A nationwide arrest warrant was issued on Jan. 2, 2011.

Lee’s criminal record includes convictions for domestic assault in 1997 and stalking in 2003, and two separate convictions for violating no-contact orders in 2010.

An omnibus hearing in Lee’s case is scheduled Aug. 28 in Dakota County District Court in Hastings.