Fox Indicted for Murder of Oakdale Woman

A 44-year-old man was indicted Thursday in connection with the murder of Oakdale resident Lori C. Baker, according to a press release from the Washington County Attorney’s Office.

Thomas J. Fox was indicted for first-degree premeditated murder and first-degree intentional murder during the course of an aggravated robbery, the release says.

Baker, 39, was found stabbed to death in her Oakdale Village apartment Dec. 28 by the woman whose family she worked for as a nanny.

When Fox was arrested the day after Baker's body was discovered, police found him at a Greyhound Bus station with a ticket to Milwaukee under another name, the Pioneer Press reported, quoting Washington County Attorney Pete Orput.

One former inmate who served time with Fox told the Star Tribune that Fox said Baker was gullible, and that he met her at , where one of his relatives lives. 

Fox and Baker fought, the inmate told the newspaper, when she discovered his true identity and criminal history—a fight that resulted in her death. Several inmates have become witnesses for the prosecution, according to the Star Tribune report.

Orput presented two days of testimony in front of a grand jury before getting the indictment late Thursday, the release says.

The reason for the delay between the date of the crime and charges was that the Washington County Attorney's Office was waiting for forensic evidence to be processed by the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, County Attorney Pete Orput told the Pioneer Press.

Fox is currently being held in the Washington County Jail on charges unrelated to the murder, according to Minnesota Department of Corrections records. 

Fox’s next appearance in Washington County District Court is set for 1:30 p.m. May 3 before trial Judge Gregory Galler, the release says.

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