Roseville man arrested in string of bias crimes

ROSEVILLE, Minn. (AP) — A Roseville man has been charged in a string of bias crimes in the St. Paul suburb. Roseville Deputy Police Chief Erika Scheider says 49-year-old Kevin Jay Karjalahti was arrested Wednesday and charged Thursday with three counts of felony threats of violence.

Karjalahti is suspected of leaving notes threatening violence and arson at homes with signs supporting Black Lives Matter or messages of inclusion. Four threatening notes were left from May 29 to June 1 at residences _ three in Roseville and one in St. Paul.

In one case, a resident found a note saying it would be in their interest to remove their “Black Lives Matter” sign because “Payback is coming.” The Star Tribune reports forensic investigators found fingerprints matching Karjalahti’s on two letters.