Rochester Man Pleads Guilty in AK-47 Threat and Theft Cases

Rochester, MN (KROC-AM News) - A Rochester man accused of threatening a man with an AK-47 style rifle has entered into a plea agreement to settle charges connected to five separate criminal cases.

According to court records, 28-year-old Jorge Lozano was arrested in late July 2023 following a traffic stop on Highway 52. The court documents say Lozano was in the passenger seat and the officer involved in the traffic stop spotted what was described as an assault rifle chambered with a 7.62 mm bullet at his feet.

The charges filed in the case alleged the rifle was used the week before in an incident outside a southeast Rochester home. The criminal complaint says a man reported that he was followed home by another vehicle and a man got out and pointed what appeared to be an AK-47 rifle at him.

The court document states that the victim told the responding officers that his seven-year-old daughter was with him at the time. The man, who also told the officers that he feared for his life and the life of his daughter, recognized the man with the gun and identified him as Lozano.

Following his arrest, Lozano was charged with second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon. Under the terms of his plea agreement, he entered a guilty plea to an amended charge of threats of violence.

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Court records show he also admitted to a felony theft charge in connection with the complaint that accused him of being involved in the theft of dirt bikes from a storage facility in Oronoco in March 2023 and another felony theft charge stemming from the theft of more than $3000 worth of merchandise from a Rochester business in September 2023.

In exchange, a fifth-degree drug possession charge and a misdemeanor shoplifting charge were dismissed.

Lozano is scheduled to be sentenced in March.