Man arrested after shots fired in apartment

Cloquet police officers were called to a Cloquet apartment complex early Friday morning and ended up disarming a man who appeared to be under the influence of drugs and told police he had fired his handgun nine times.

Todd Richard LaDoucer, 53, of Roseville, Minnesota, was charged Monday in Carlton County Sixth District Court with first-degree damage to property, two counts of intentional discharge of a firearm that endangers safety, one count of felon convicted of a crime of violence-firearm violation, felon in possession of a firearm — all felonies — plus a misdemeanor count of tampering with or false fire alarms.

According to the criminal complaint, at 4:17 a.m. Friday, Feb. 19, Cloquet Police officers responded to a disturbance at the Sahlman Apartments. The complaint reported sounds of yelling and pounding.

Upon arrival, the first officer observed a man running in the hallway and recognized LaDoucer. He also observed LaDoucer was carrying a handgun and grabbed his arm, disarming him. LaDoucer appeared to be under the influence of a stimulant and allegedly told police he had fired his handgun nine times.

According to the criminal complaint, officers responded to an apartment in the building and observed that multiple shots had been fired into the wall shared with a neighboring apartment. At least four rounds traveled through the shared wall and at least one room of the apartment, and had passed near the foot of the resident’s bed where she was sleeping.

While on scene, officers also received a report that a bullet had exited the apartment building and struck a neighboring building. A round entered through a bedroom window, passed over the bed where a child was sleeping and struck the floor. In total, officers found evidence of seven shots fired in the apartment. Property damage is estimated in excess of $1,000.

LaDoucer is also accused of pulling the fire alarm in the apartment. The Carlton County Sheriff’s Office assisted the CPD on the call.

“We are incredibly thankful that no one was injured during this event and for the responding officers’ courage,” the CPD posted on Facebook. “It’s a grim reminder of the dangers our officers can encounter on any given night.”

LaDoucher was also arrested in January for possessing a pistol without a permit in a public place after officers were called to a mini storage unit on the report of a distraught person. According to the criminal complaint in that case, LaDoucer allegedly claimed he was being chased by the mob, who wanted to kill him. Police allegedly found a flare gun in his jacket pocket, which had been modified to operate as a pistol. That case is still working its way through the court system. His criminal history includes several DWI convictions, second-degree arson, attempted theft, and driving after cancellation, among other things.

The Cloquet Police Department said there is still an open and active investigation. Anyone who may have information, please contact the Cloquet PD at 218-879-1247, email [email protected], or via tip by texting the keywords TIP CLOQUETPD followed by a message to 888777. Reference case #21000300.