Armed suspects sought in Long Lake home invasion

A husband and wife were bound, beaten and robbed Saturday afternoon after three men forced their way into the couple's Long Lake home, fleeing only after one of the suspects apparently was shot.

The three men, described by police as armed and dangerous, left behind a trail of blood when they fled with wallets, cellphones and a red 2014 Kia Sorento belonging to John Davis, 46, and his wife, Karen Davis, 55. The Sorento has a Minnesota license plate: 723-KVL.

Police said they didn't know why the three men chose the Davis home. Elaborating further Saturday night, Wayzata Police Chief Mike Risvold said he didn't think there is a specific danger to the city of Long Lake but cautioned that at least two handguns were involved. The suspects were still at large Saturday evening.

"They are out there," said Risvold, "and they have demonstrated dangerous behavior this afternoon."

John Davis was taken to North Memorial Medical Center for treatment of back and neck wounds, police said. Karen Davis was punched in the face but declined medical treatment, according to police.

The home invasion at 294 Glenmoor Lane began shortly after 2 p.m., when Karen Davis answered a knock on the door. The men forced their way in, took the couple to the basement, and then beat and bound them with duct tape on their wrists, necks, faces and possibly legs, police said.

They were bound for about 90 minutes before Karen Davis worked her way free and called police.

Wayzata police officer Robert Vanderheiden said the assailants had been in the home during much of that 90-minute ordeal, during which a gun went off and one of the suspects may have been struck by a bullet from an accomplice's gun.

A trail of blood led away from the front of the house — and it wasn't the homeowners' blood, he said.

The suspects were wielding two guns that were not recovered, he said.

The three men were described as black, with two of them believed to be in their 40s. One was 6-foot-4 or 6-foot-5 and muscular, while another was about 6 feet tall. A third suspect's description was more vague, but he's believed to be in his 30s, Vanderheiden said.

Neighbors said that they saw a gray or silver Toyota that sat low to the ground in the couple's driveway during the ordeal and that they hadn't seen that car in the neighborhood before.

Police said the suspects came in that car and left in two cars, including the victims' Kia.

The sage-green split-level home is in a quiet, well-kept part of this city of about 1,800 just north of Lake Minnetonka.

Last October, many police officers surrounded the house and went inside, said neighbor Jane Knutson.

"There were police all over," she said. "I asked them what was going on. One of the officers said, 'There's nothing to worry about.' "

She never heard any more about the incident after that, Knutson said.

Risvold confirmed Saturday that officers from local drug task forces had gone to the Davis home last fall with a search warrant for narcotics, but he said it was too early to tell if Saturday's incident was connected to that search. He also didn't know if any charges had resulted from that search.

Vanderheiden said it's also too early to tell what motivated the suspects in Saturday's attack or if the home invasion was a random act.

"It's very unusual anywhere in the metro, let along Long Lake," Vanderheiden said.

Other agencies involved in looking for the suspects and possible witnesses include the State Patrol, the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office, Orono police and investigators from the Plymouth Crime Lab.

Staff Writer Patrick Kennedy contributed to this report. Joy Powell • 612-673-7750