An off-duty St. Paul firefighter was looking at a lottery ticket inside a gas station in St. Paul last spring when he felt something spray him from behind, he said in court.

He turned around and saw a 9-year-old boy holding a spray bottle of glass and surface cleaner. That’s when he lost his temper, Kevin Lagos told a Ramsey County district judge Monday.

Lagos grabbed the spray bottle from the boy, pointed it at him and raised his voice, he said.

He made the admission during a plea hearing in which the 53-year-old wound up pleading guilty to one count of misdemeanor-level fifth-degree assault for his conduct.

A disorderly conduct charge previously facing him in the case was dismissed.

‘SHOULD HAVE HANDLED THE SITUATION BETTER’

Lagos’ attorney, Dan Guerrero, said the assault charge involves invoking fear in someone without engaging in physical contact.

“He apologized and said he should have handled the situation better,” Guerrero said of Lagos’ remarks during the hearing. “He never hurt the boy.”

“He is a very good person,” Guerrero added of Lagos, who has served on the St. Paul Fire Department for more than 20 years.

“He never placed blame on the kid. … It was just kind of a crazy thing,” he continued. “You don’t expect to be shot in the back of the head with a cleaner while you are checking your lottery ticket at the store, but he could have been a little calmer under the circumstances.”

His client’s admission in court differed from what the criminal complaint said happened during the April 2 incident, which took place at the SuperAmerica (now Speedway) at 925 Grand Ave. in St. Paul.

MEDICS CALLED TO THE SCENE

The charging document says the boy’s mother was in the bathroom when she heard a man say, “Why would you do that,” followed by her son saying, “I’m sorry. I’m sorry,” the complaint said.

Then she said she heard her son screaming.

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Scandia: Two dead in head-on crash Thursday night The boy told police who responded to the scene that he sprayed Lagos in the back of the shirt and neck with a cleaning product while his mother was in the restroom, the complaint said. Angry, he said Lagos took the bottle from him, grabbed him by the collar and sprayed him in the face with the cleaning agent, the complaint said.

The boy reportedly got some of the cleaner in his eyes and medics were called to the scene, but the boy’s mother said she would take her son to the hospital herself.

The incident was caught on the store’s surveillance system and Lagos gave a voluntary statement to police, saying at the time that while the boy sprayed him, he didn’t spray him back.

Guerrero said his client has insisted that he never sprayed the boy ever since.

LAGOS HAD JUST COME FROM CEMETERY

He added that Lagos was under a lot of stress that day as he had just visited the cemetery where he and his wife buried their stillborn child a year earlier.

During his fire department career, Lagos has been lauded for helping to save a fellow firefighter who fell through a hole in a floor during a house fire. Some of his colleagues were also involved.

He was placed on paid administrative leave from his position as a fire equipment operator Jan. 10 after his superiors learned of the criminal case pending against him, Guerrero said. He added that the department was made aware of the case by a media report.

He has had no prior internal complaints during his career, according to St. Paul labor relations manager Jason Schmidt.

SENTENCE: WRITE APOLOGY, COMMUNITY SERVICE

Lagos was sentenced Monday to write a letter of apology for his conduct and complete 40 hours of community service, according to court records.

If he remains law-abiding for the next year, the charge will not go on his record.

Guerrero said he expects that Lagos will soon resume working at the fire department.