Thief River Falls, MN (trfnews.i234.me) – On April 4, 2023, police received a report of an assault in the 100 block of Greenwood St. W. A woman sought a welfare check since a man had been involved in a fight at his residence and he needed to go to an emergency room.
Vladimere James Olson, now 26, Badger, has been charged with felony third-degree assault.
The complaint was filed April 8, 2024. Olson allegedly assaulted another man, causing his nose to break and causing a laceration to the man’s scalp. The complaint indicated that the laceration went down to the man’s skull and required 10 staples to close. Upon receiving the call, officers entered the home, allegedly observing a large blood stain on a door, and dried blood on the kitchen counter, living room floor, and walls. They found the man sleeping. He had blood on his face, arms and chest. Blood was found on his pillow as well. He said he didn’t remember what had happened other than he had gone to bed and officers had woken him up.
Later, the man told officers that he had been drinking alcohol and he had been told by the caller that the fight started over him kicking Olson out of the home. The man said he had been trying to kick Olson out of the home for a couple of days since Olson’s dog was defecating on the deck. He and at least one other man referred to Olson as the alleged victim’s roommate, but Olson said he doesn’t live there but he had been looking at moving there. He referred to the man as his best friend. The man didn’t know what had been used to hit him and he wanted to press charges since Olson had left him there to die, according to the complaint.
The caller told police that a second woman told her that she and a man had tried to break up the fight. The second woman tried to get him to go to the hospital. She took a photo of the man’s injury, which led the caller to notify authorities. Six days after the incident, the investigator was able to speak with Olson, who allegedly said they weren’t necessarily arguing but were “getting after each other.” Then they started swinging each other around, went over a heater and hit some drawers that had been out.
Olson allegedly said no punches were thrown during the initial altercation, but the man later attacked and punched him. Numerous times, he said the other man had been drinking heavily. He said the man hadn’t tried kicking him out of the house earlier that day, but the man was upset about a woman.
He told the investigator that the man was coherent and the man’s wound was as large at that time. Olson said he had helped the man wash off, but the caller said the woman told her that he refused to assist in washing the man up.