Suspect was released from jail hours before he allegedly assaulted woman

The suspect who allegedly assaulted a woman early Thursday morning had been released from jail the afternoon prior to the attack.

John Robert Olson, 39, of Mankato, was jailed in July on charges of felony harassment after he was accused of striking his ex-girlfriend in the face.  He was also charged with misdemeanor domestic assault.

Olson remained behind bars until Wednesday afternoon, according to the 3 p.m. time stamp on his release order, dated Aug 23.

At his plea hearing just before his release, Olson agreed to plead guilty to the gross misdemeanor domestic assault charge.  The felony harassment charge was dropped as part of the plea deal, which was filed without a judge’s signature.

As part of Olson’s release conditions, Judge Krista J. Jass ordered that he stay at least 100 yards from the victim’s residence, refrain from alcohol and drug use, and remain law-abiding.

About 13 hours after his release on Thursday morning, Mankato police responded to a call about an injured female.  Investigators found an “unresponsive” woman with “obvious injuries from an assault” at the scene.

On Friday morning, investigators asked for the public’s help in locating Olson, naming him as a suspect in the assault.

Olson was behind bars again by 3:30 p.m., about 24 hours after his release order was filed in the courts.