Oakdale Man Charged with Car Theft in Dakota County

An Oakdale man has been charged with driving a stolen car after police say they found him with the vehicle in Burnsville last week.

Joseph Thomas Beran, 29, is charged with receiving stolen property, a felony with a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $10,000 fine. Beran is also charged with misdemeanor domestic assault, which has a maximum penalty of 90 days in jail and a $1,000 fine. 

Beran remains in the Dakota County Jail on a $75,000 bond. He’s also being held for outstanding felony warrants in Washington County, charging him with car theft. An omnibus hearing in the Burnsville case is scheduled July 17 in Dakota County District Court in Hastings.

According to the criminal complaint, police were called to an apartment complex in Burnsville at about 2 p.m. June 16 on a report of an assault.

Officers spoke with the victim, who told them that Beran, her boyfriend, had assaulted her, then left for the apartment pool with her two children and his father.

Police checked Beran’s name, and found two outstanding warrants. The victim took police to the pool, where Beran was arrested.

The woman told police that she had been dating Beran for about a month, and that she had let him move in with her and her children. She said they began arguing June 16 because she started to pack his belongings and asked him to move out because of his drinking.

During the argument, Beran shoved her backward into a washing machine, then threw her onto a bed and threatened to rape her, according to the complaint.

Officers also spoke to a friend of the victim, who said the victim had begun sending him text messages that day saying that she was afraid of Beran and asking him to call the police. The friend told police that the car that Beran was driving was stolen.

Police checked the Buick Century that Beran had parked in the apartment complex’s parking lot and found that it had been reported stolen from Goodhue County.

Beran has an extensive Minnesota criminal history, including a number of convictions for theft.