An employee at Bailey Nurseries was stabbed to death Thursday afternoon at the company's Newport location and a man turned himself in to police not long after the slaying, authorities said.

Newport Police Chief Curt Montgomery said police were called to the nursery at 3:39 p.m. regarding the stabbing.

"The victim has since died and the suspect is in custody," according to a news release from the Washington County Sheriff's Office.

The man came with two of his relatives to the parking lot of the St. Paul Police Department, 367 Grove St., shortly before 6 p.m., police said.

Someone who had arrived in a car with the man went into police headquarters and told a desk officer that a man involved in the violence was outside, and officers went out to talk to him, police said late Thursday.

Police turned over the suspect to the Washington County Sheriff's Office, which sent deputies to pick him up.

The man was treated at Regions Hospital for some type of injuries before he was taken to the Washington County jail. His name and the victim's were not released.

The company, a family-owned nursery with its main offices and growing fields in Newport, issued a one-paragraph statement Thursday evening:

"Our deepest sympathies and condolences are extended to the family and friends of our fellow employee," it said in part.

The case was turned over to the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension on Thursday night.

Joy Powell • 612-673-7750

Staff writer Matt McKinney contributed to this report.