Waynesboro man set shed on fire in an attempted burglary, police say

A Waynesboro man was taken into custody last week after police determined he was involved in an incident where a shed caught fire.

Brandon Miner, 31, has been charged with felony burglary, arson, criminal trespass, causing catastrophe and more, according to court documents. 

On Aug. 24, Waynesboro police were dispatched to the 600 block of West Main Street for a report of a shed fire. When they arrived, officers noticed the structure consumed by flames.

At about the same time, near noon, officers received another report of criminal mischief on the same block. The caller described a white male with shaved hair, shirtless and wearing shorts, had cut the screens out of one of the apartments nearby. 

The witness also mentioned there was a gas can on his porch that had been moved, according to court records.

Suspecting the two incidents to be related, police began looking for the man. While searching, another individual flagged down the officers on Fairview Avenue to inform them that a man with a similar description had attempted to get into his parked truck, holding what looked like bolt cutters, according to police.

A fourth individual contacted police to inform them he witnessed a man with a similar description enter his shed earlier that day.

Police received another call at 1:09 p.m. saying that an "unwanted person was passed out on a chair" on the caller's back porch.

The sleeping individual matched the descriptions of previous reports. Additionally, the suspect had a pair of "loppers," which police said could have been misidentified previously as bolt cutters.

The man was identified as Miner. He was detained by police, identified by witnesses and transported to Waynesboro Police Station for questioning.

During the interview, Miner told police he went into the shed on West Main Street intending to steal items, court records indicate.

Miner said he had been smoking at the time and possibly put his cigarette down when he was piling items together. While he was sorting through the items inside, Miner told police that items began to catch fire and "explode." He fled the scene through a window, he said.

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On Sept. 3, a fire investigator informed police that based on his investigation, he determined the fire to be arson. There was a pile of books where the fire had started and a pool of accelerant where the books had been stacked. A melted gas can was found at the other end of the structure. 

The renters of the property told police the books had not originally been in the garage section of the structure. 

The fire investigator also discovered a plastic screen on the ground outside of the structure where they believe Miner had escaped, according to court documents. 

The owner of the property reported $46,000 in damages to the structure. A firefighter sustained second-degree burns to his left ear as a result of the fire. 

Miner was put in Franklin County Jail on $150,000 bail.

He is scheduled to appear before Magisterial District Judge Annie Gomez Shockey for a preliminary hearing on Sept. 21.

Carley Bonk is a Watchdog Reporter for the USA Today Network - Pennsylvania. Her coverage spans across the southcentral region of Pennsylvania. She can be reached at cbonk@publicopinionnews.com or on Twitter at @carls_marie.