State Rep. Dennis J. Smith was robbed at gunpoint Thursday night outside a Grand Avenue restaurant. His cellphone, wallet and mementos from his late father were stolen.
Smith, a Republican from Maple Grove, was not injured.
"My father passed away last year, and I had some mementos of my father's that I carry with me every day," Smith said Friday. "Those things are more important to me than the money and credit cards that I lost."
Smith declined to say what the mementos were, but he said he kept them in his wallet.
The robbery occurred about 10:40 p.m. on Milton Street near Grand Avenue, after Smith left Salut Bar Americain. Smith was the chief House sponsor of a bill to bring Minnesota into compliance with federal Real ID standards; Gov. Mark Dayton signed that bill on Thursday.
Smith said he had just finished a celebratory dinner with a few other representatives when he was robbed.
According to a police report and St. Paul police spokesman Steve Linders: Smith was using his phone and walking northbound on the east side of Milton Street. He was north of Grand Avenue when a man approached him and pointed a gun.
The robber demanded Smith's wallet and cellphone. Smith complied.
