Three Women Charged with Attacking, Robbing Man Outside of Burnsville Bar

Was it a robbery or a drug deal gone bad? Police say three Twin Cities women assaulted a fellow bar patron, robbed him and dragged his body along the road as they made a getaway. The suspects say the alleged victim is in fact the aggressor, however.

Burnsville Police arrested Sultana Rasul Karimi, a 21-year-old from Shakopee, Brooklyn Center resident Kadie Mariah Risland, 21, and Savorn Sang, 23, of Eagan. Each woman is charged with two counts of fifth-degree assault, a misdemeanor, and one count of simple robbery, a felony that carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a potential fine ranging from $6,000 to $20,000. Risland faces three additional charges for possession of prescription pills and marijuana.

On Saturday, the Burnsville Police were called to the intersection of County Road 11 and Highway 13 on a report of a robbery. There they found the alleged victim, bleeding heavily from the head. He seemed to have a number of fresh cuts on his face.

The man said he met the three women at a bar. At the time, he had an unusually large amount of cash on hand—$3,000—which he had gotten from an insurance claim earlier that week. After playing a game of pool with the trio, he paid for his drink and left.

He said he was walking south when someone struck him in the head from behind, knocking him to the pavement. The victim said the assailant was Risland, who rifled through his pockets, took his money and made a break for a 2008 Chevrolet waiting nearby. He ran to the driver's side of the car, trying to get his money back. The man told police he was still clinging to the vehicle as it drove away, dragging him until he let go.

The victim immediately called police. He was taken to  for treatment. 

Officers soon found the vehicle he described, with the three girls matching the victim's description. In the Chevy, police found marijuana, 12 prescription pills, and a large amount of cash. 

According to the criminal complaint, the three suspects told police that they had met the victim at a bar that night. The three women offered officers conflicting accounts of precisely what happened after that, however, though all said the alleged victim started the argument that ensued. 

Sang said all four had gone outside to smoke weed, when an argument broke out between the man and one of the women. To avoid further conflict they got in Karimi's car and tried to drive away, she said, but the victim latched onto it. Sang said she didn't know anything else about what had happened.

For her part, Risland said the victim approached her about buying marijuana. He followed her outside to her vehicle, but attempted to grab the bag of weed during the transaction, she said. Like Sang, Risland said the three jumped into the car, but were pursued by the victim, who held on as they drove off. She denied knowing how his blood might have gotten on the vehicle's door. The money, she said, belonged to another friend. 

Karimi told police a very different version of events, apparently stating that the cash belonged to her. She said that the victim had seen it and offered to sell her drugs. Karimi said the incident began while she was in the driver's seat of the car. The victim was leaning on the driver's side window, when he began hitting the other two passengers, she said, so she drove off. Karimi maintained that no one hit the victim.

All three were released from custody on Tuesday.