Man Lit Fire, Grabbed Cop's Gun As SWAT Team Searched Apartment: Reports

MAPLEWOOD, MN — A man is charged after he lit a fire in an apartment and grabbed an officer’s gun, threatening to kill police, according to reports.

Joshua Steven Jorgenson is charged with arson, violent threats and disarming an officer, KSTP reported.

The charges stem from an incident Monday, when members of a St. Paul SWAT team went to an apartment on Century Avenue North in Maplewood to execute a search warrant in connection with the missing person case of Manijeh “Mani” Starren, according to police.

While authorities were at the apartment, two men barricaded themselves and a fire was started, police said, adding one of the men fought SWAT officers during his arrest. Two officers and the man were taken to Regions Hospital with minor injuries, according to police.

Jorgenson lit the fire in a bedroom closet, activating his building’s sprinklers and forcing tenants to evacuate, KSTP reported. Police used a “chemical irritant” to prompt Jorgenson to leave the room, and he responded by shouting he had a gun and would kill them and grabbing an officer’s AR-15 rifle, according to KSTP, which reported the officer was able to keep control of the firearm.

Jorgenson, 40, is a person of interest in Starren’s disappearance, according to KSTP. She was reported missing May 1 in St. Paul and the investigation of her case remains open and active, police said.