Red Wing Man with 30+ Prior Felonies Sentenced to Prison Following Dakota County Cases; Pine County and Rice County Cases Still Pending
DAKOTA COUNTY, MINNESOTA—A Red Wing man with a long history of violent and financial crimes has now been sentenced to state prison following three interconnected Dakota County criminal cases in 2025, including a road-rage gun-pointing incident, a late-night confrontation in Farmington, and a check-fraud operation spanning multiple victims and businesses.
Court records show 46-year-old Ramon Jimenez Ruiz has accumulated more than 30 prior felony convictions since 2009.
Case 1 — Highway 52 Gun-Pointing Incident (January 2025)
Charge: Threats of Violence (Replica Firearm or BB Gun)
Sentence: 364 days in Dakota County Jail (114 days credit)
The first case arose from a road-rage incident on the morning of January 31, 2025, along northbound Highway 52 in Dakota County. According to the criminal complaint filed by the Dakota County Attorney’s Office, a Minnesota Department of Corrections officer, who was in uniform and driving to work, reported that a driver in another vehicle, later identified as Ramon Jimenez Ruiz, repeatedly braked, accelerated, and swerved to block him from merging. When the officer gestured toward the driver, Ruiz allegedly raised a small black pistol-shaped object, first pointing it upward, then directly at the victim before speeding away.
Troopers with the Minnesota State Patrol later stopped Ruiz near Yankee Doodle Road and Highway 149. Ruiz admitted to being involved in the altercation but claimed the “gun” was actually a lighter designed to look like a handgun, which he said he used to light a cigarette.
He was charged with threats of violence involving a replica firearm, a felony offense under Minn. Stat. § 609.713 subd. 3(a)(1). On September 15, 2025, Ruiz entered a guilty plea, and Judge Luis Morales sentenced him to 364 days in jail, giving 114 days of credit for time served. The charge was reduced to a gross misdemeanor after a downward dispositional departure, and restitution was reserved for 60 days pending victim impact review. As part of the agreement for his guilty plea, his charges related to case #2, below, were dismissed.
Case 2 — Farmington Gun-Pointing Incident and Related Dismissal (July 2025)
Disposition: Dismissed per plea agreement tied to Case #1
While the January Highway 52 event launched the first prosecution, a second, later incident in Farmington on July 26, 2025, led to another criminal file, which prosecutors ultimately dismissed as part of a plea agreement.
According to the criminal complaint from the Dakota County Attorney’s Office, this incident is tied to a story we had covered earlier in the City of Farmington. You can read our original story on that incident here: Farmington Police Search for Armed Suspect Following Vehicle Repossession Incident.
According to the complaint, the Farmington police were called late in the evening on July 26 to investigate a gunpointing complaint involving a dark-colored vehicle outside a local business. The complaint states that a tow truck driver saw a Jeep Compass that was improperly parked and began to hook it up to tow. That was when a man ran up to the tow truck driver from a neighboring building and got into a verbal argument over the vehicle. That man was later identified as Ruiz. The tow operator told Ruiz that the vehicle was being impounded, which was when Ruiz pulled a gun on the tow operator. The tow truck driver put the vehicle back on the ground, which was when Ruiz fled in the vehicle before later abandoning it a short distance later, but Ruiz was not found with the vehicle.
Ruiz was found two days later and taken into custody, and positively identified as the suspect in the incident.
The dismissal order, signed by Judge Luis Morales on September 15, 2025, states that the Farmington case was dismissed “pursuant to the agreement in court file 19HA-CR-25-395 [Case #1].”
Case 3 — Counterfeit Checks and Financial Crimes (July 2025)
Charges:
Count 1: Stolen or Counterfeit Checks (Over $2,500 or 4+ Victims)
Count 2: Issuance of Dishonored Checks (Over $500)
Sentence: 27 months in prison (Count 1) and 25 months (Count 2), served concurrently
The third case uncovered a complex fraud scheme involving both stolen and forged checks, and a separate case of a bad check written to a local business in Hampton Township.
According to the Dakota County criminal complaint, deputies were first called to Business A in Hampton Township after a check written by Ruiz for $767.64 was returned for insufficient funds. The owner told deputies that Ruiz had purchased several items on July 3, 2025, and paid by check. When the payment was rejected, the owner repeatedly attempted to contact Ruiz, but each call was met with someone claiming Ruiz wasn’t available.
After the business mailed Ruiz a certified demand for payment under Minn. Stat. § 609.535, subd. 3(3) on July 23, no payment was received. Deputies opened a criminal investigation into the bad check.
Three days later, on July 26, officers in Farmington located Ruiz’s Jeep Compass, the exact vehicle tied to the earlier gunpointing incident (Case #2), while executing a search warrant in connection with an unrelated case. During the search, investigators recovered:
An invoice from Business A matching the exact amount of the bad check ($767.64);
Several stolen and “washed” checks belonging to multiple victims, including Business B, Business C, Business D, and two individual victims;
Evidence showing the checks had been chemically altered to replace the original payee names with Ruiz’s name or a business he controlled;
One check appeared to contain a fraudulent signature.
Checks drawn from an account belonging to Victim 2, who confirmed that she did not know Ruiz and had not authorized him to access her financial information.
Each of the check owners confirmed that the checks found in Ruiz’s possession contained their legitimate account numbers and that he had no permission to possess, alter, or deposit them.
Deputies determined that Ruiz’s actions met the statutory definition of a felony theft and counterfeiting operation, both for the altered checks and for the dishonored payment to Business A. The investigation concluded that Ruiz had targeted multiple businesses and individuals, using a combination of bad checks, stolen financial information, and counterfeit materials to obtain money and goods.
On October 6, 2025, Judge Katryn Iverson sentenced Ruiz to:
27 months at the Minnesota Correctional Facility – St. Cloud for the stolen or counterfeit checks charge; and
25 months for the issuance of dishonored checks, to be served concurrently.
Ruiz received 70 days of jail credit, was ordered to submit a DNA sample, and restitution was reserved for 60 days while Dakota County Community Corrections determines the full extent of the losses to the victims. All court fees and surcharges were waived due to Ruiz’s incarceration and lack of resources.
Pending Felony Cases in Pine and Rice Counties
In addition to the three above cases and the 30 prior felony convictions Ruiz has had since 2009, which we summarize at the end of this article, Ruiz is still facing two more court cases in Pine and Rice Counties, Minnesota.
Case One: Knife Assault and Theft by Swindle in Faribault
According to a Rice County criminal complaint filed March 24, 2025, Ramon Jimenez Ruiz, 45, of Red Wing, is accused of assaulting a Walmart loss prevention employee with a knife after allegedly attempting to swindle the store out of merchandise worth $228.15.
Faribault Police were dispatched to the Walmart at 150 Western Avenue North on March 23, after a store employee reported that Ruiz had pulled a knife during a confrontation over suspected shoplifting.
The employee told police that Ruiz had taken items from store shelves, used them to obtain a refund fraudulently, and then purchased other items with the refund gift card. When the worker confronted Ruiz near the exit, Ruiz allegedly pulled a small knife with an orange handle and began advancing toward him. The worker told officers that he feared he was about to be stabbed and backed away.
Security footage reviewed by responding officers reportedly confirmed that Ruiz drew the knife and moved toward the employee while continuing to argue that he had paid for everything. Another Walmart employee also told police they saw Ruiz holding the knife during the incident.
Ruiz was later charged with Second-Degree Assault with a Dangerous Weapon, a felony, and Theft by Swindling, a misdemeanor. He was taken into custody but was released on bail on March 27, 2025, after posting a bail of around $1,000, according to court records. His next court appearance related to this case is set for December 19, 2025, at 1:45 PM.
Case Two: Major Drug and Burglary Charges in Pine County
Just over a month later, Ruiz was again arrested, this time in Pine County, after deputies responded to another Walmart, located in Pine City, on April 29, 2025.
According to the criminal complaint filed May 1, deputies were called to the store for a report of two individuals attempting to steal merchandise and becoming argumentative with staff. The suspects, identified as Ramon Jimenez Ruiz and Nicole Justine Estrem, 39, reportedly left the scene in a gray Chevrolet Impala but were quickly stopped by deputies.
When officers searched the vehicle, they allegedly discovered multiple baggies containing methamphetamine and amphetamine, drug paraphernalia, forged checks, two computers, a printer, and a binder filled with receipts from various stores. One case reportedly contained 76 grams of methamphetamine, while another held 132 amphetamine pills.
Investigators also found checks and documents belonging to other individuals, including what appeared to be counterfeit financial materials.
Ruiz and Estrem were both arrested and charged with:
First-Degree Controlled Substance Crime (Possession of 50 grams or more of methamphetamine)
Second-Degree Controlled Substance Crime (Possession of 50 grams or 100 dose units of amphetamine or hallucinogens)
Third-Degree Burglary
Deputies noted in the complaint that both individuals had been previously trespassed from all Walmart stores until 2026 due to past theft incidents. Records further revealed Ruiz has an extensive criminal history, including nine prior felony convictions for check forgery between 2023 and 2025, as well as additional felony convictions for identity theft, financial transaction card fraud, theft by swindle, and issuing a dishonored check.
He was also previously convicted of being an ineligible person in possession of a firearm or ammunition in 2017.
Court records show his bond was set at $100,000 without conditions and $25,000 with conditions in this case on June 1, 2025. On June 20, 2025, court records show he posted a non-cash bond of $25,000. By July 14, 2025, court records indicate that a conditional release violation report was issued for Ruiz, alleging that he failed to report to his Agent as directed and failed to submit to random testing as requested by his probation officer. By July 15, 2025, a nationwide warrant was issued for his arrest for these alleged violations.
Ruiz would eventually be taken into custody on July 29, 2025, by the Minnesota State Patrol in connection with the two Dakota County cases.
His next court appearance related to this case is set for December 15, 2025, at 1:30 PM.
Extensive Criminal Record Spanning More Than a Decade
Court records indicate that Ruiz has a lengthy criminal history, dating back more than 15 years, with dozens of convictions across multiple Minnesota counties. His prior convictions include:
2025: Felony Check Forgery
2024: Felony Check Forgery; Felony Offer Forged Check
2023: Felony Offer Forged Check (×6); Felony Issue Dishonored Check (×3); Felony Identity Theft; Felony Financial Transaction Card Fraud; Gross Misdemeanor Theft by Swindle (×2); and Gross Misdemeanor Fifth-Degree Controlled Substance Crime
2021: Gross Misdemeanor Obstruction of Legal Process
2017: Felony Possession of a Firearm (×2); Felony Violation of an Order for Protection; Felony Fleeing a Police Officer in a Motor Vehicle; Gross Misdemeanor Harassment Restraining Order Violation; and Gross Misdemeanor Obstruction
2015: Misdemeanor Fifth-Degree Assault
2013: Felony Domestic Abuse No Contact Order Violation (×4); Gross Misdemeanor Fourth-Degree Assault (×3); Gross Misdemeanor Fifth-Degree Assault; and Gross Misdemeanor Obstruction
2010: Felony Receiving Stolen Property (×2); Felony Theft; Felony Possession of Stolen Checks; Felony Aggravated Forgery; Felony Offer Forged Check; Gross Misdemeanor Domestic Assault; and Gross Misdemeanor Damage to Property
2009: Felony Theft; Felony Receiving Stolen Property; and Felony Fifth-Degree Controlled Substance Crime
Provided by Dakota County Jail.
Written by: Will Wight
