A serial arsonist with a documented history of setting fires in Hennepin County and who was once deemed by the court to be a “danger to public safety” has received a stayed sentence from a Hennepin County judge on his most recent, fifth, arson conviction in July.
Alpha News reported in May that Alan Theodore Enger had been charged with second-degree arson after intentionally setting a vehicle on fire in north Minneapolis.
READ: “I’m an arsonist”: Alan Theodore Enger Charged with Arson, Again
When fire investigators arrived at the fire scene on May 7, they found the victim arguing with Enger about why he had started the victim’s vehicle on fire. Enger stated “because that is what you get when you f*ck with me.” When officers took Enger into custody he kept “referring to himself as an arsonist,” the criminal complaint said.
Enger, who will turn 55 next week, has nearly 30 criminal cases in Minnesota including four prior convictions for arson, several DUIs, robbery, assault, violation of an order for protection, obstruction, narcotics and damage to property. At sentencing on Enger’s fourth arson conviction in 2005 he was deemed by the court to be a “career offender” and a “danger to public safety.”
Enger was arrested immediately following the May 7 fire and remained in jail without posting bail. He pleaded guilty to one count of felony second-degree arson in June and was scheduled for sentencing on July 9.
Enger was convicted of arson for the fifth time on July 9 and sentenced to 28 months in prison. However, despite his lengthy criminal history and four prior arson convictions, his felony sentence was stayed by Judge Martha Anne Holton Dimick. Enger was alternatively sentenced to 120 days in the Hennepin County workhouse and given credit for 64 days of time already served. Under Minnesota Sentencing Guidelines that require offenders to only serve two-thirds of their sentence locked up, that left Enger with a remaining 16 days to serve in local lock-up. Enger has since been released from custody in Hennepin County and will be on supervised probation for a term of three years.
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Crime Watch MN
Minnesota Crime Watch & Information publishes news, info and commentary about crime, public safety and livability issues in Minneapolis, the Twin Cities and Greater Minnesota.
