Rosemount, Apple Valley Men Charged With Arson, Burglary in UMore Park Fire

A Rosemount man and Apple Valley man each have been charged with arson, burglary and property damage after police say they allegedly lit hay bales on fire in a shed on the UMore Park property in Rosemount, and the shed burned down after firefighters couldn't put out the blaze.

Joseph Michael Sanem, 22, of Rosemount, and Matthew Thomas Bernsten, 21, of Apple Valley, each are charged with second-degree arson, second-degree burglary and first-degree criminal damage to property, all felonies.

According to the criminal complaint, a Dakota County Sheriff's deputy saw a car parked on the east side of the University of Minnesota's Outreach, Research and Education Park around 1:30 a.m. Jan. 5.

When he approached the car, the four male occupants, including Bernsten and Sanem, said they had been exploring, according to the complaint.

The deputy let them leave, and about 10 minutes later he smelled smoke, the complaint says; he turned around and saw flames, and drove closer to find a shed on fire—the shed the men had parked their car next to, according to the complaint.

While firefighters tried to put out the fire, Rosemount police stopped the car on the road, with Bernsten and the two other occupants still inside, the complaint says; police found Sanem at a Rosemount house and took all four people to the Dakota County Sheriff's Office.

The complaint says Bernsten declined to give a statement. Sanem, shortly after declining to talk to police, told an investigator that he and Bernsten were crawling on hay bales in the shed and as a joke, Bernsten allegedly lit multiple hay bales, "to see if it would light," the complaint says.

Sanem allegedly told the investigator that he didn't light any hay bales, but did not stop Bernsten or try to put out the fire, the complaint says, and "it got out of hand."

Sanem also allegedly said the two other people in the car were not involved.

Firefighters couldn't put out the fire and it burned down at an expected loss of $50,000 to $100,000, the complaint says.

The maximum penalty for each man on the three charges combined would be 25 years in prison and a $50,000 fine.

Omnibus hearings in Dakota County Court are scheduled for both men: March 26 for Bernsten, and April 23 for Sanem, court records show.