Man Charged With Setting Multiple Fires In Scott County Days After Previous Arson Arrest
Published: May 16th 2026
SCOTT COUNTY: A Prior Lake man who had been charged with arson just days earlier is now facing new arson and trespassing charges in Scott County after authorities say he intentionally set multiple fires near homes along Pueblo Boulevard.
According to a Scott County criminal complaint, deputies were dispatched on May 13, 2026, to the area of Pueblo Boulevard for a reported fire. As deputies approached, they observed smoke and flames coming from a ravine between properties in the area of the 46 and 80 blocks of Pueblo Boulevard. The complaint states the fire spread along a field edge through multiple properties and climbed a hillside at a moderate pace.
While deputies were on scene, a resident in the 51 block of Pueblo Boulevard reported that a man wearing gray sweatpants, a gray sweatshirt, and carrying a black backpack had attempted to open her door to let her dog outside, according to the complaint.
Another resident in the 65 block of Pueblo Boulevard told authorities he had seen a shirtless man in the woods lighting a pile of wood on fire. When confronted, the man allegedly responded that he was starting the fires because “it looks like it needed to be burned,” the complaint states.
Authorities ultimately located fires on three separate properties on or near Pueblo Boulevard.
Deputies later encountered a man described as a white male with a shaved head wearing gray sweatpants and no shirt. He was identified as Aleksey Anatolyevich Pererva, 36, according to the complaint.
The complaint states that while deputies were escorting Pererva to a squad car, he allegedly said he started the fires because he had “nothing to lose.”
After being advised of his Miranda rights, Pererva allegedly told investigators he had been released from jail two days earlier. Court records cited in the complaint state Pererva had been arrested on May 10, 2026, and charged with fifth-degree arson in Scott County Court File No. 70-CR-26-7257.
According to the complaint, Pererva told investigators he had walked to a wooded area near Jordan and later decided to set brush on fire because, in Ukraine, burning brush helped fruit grow, and he wanted fruit to grow.
Investigators reportedly recovered a backpack, gray sweatshirt, and several lighters when Pererva was arrested. Witnesses from the 51 and 65 blocks of Pueblo Boulevard later identified him as the man they had seen earlier, according to the complaint.
Pererva is charged with three counts of fifth-degree arson and one count of trespassing involving entering or occupying a dwelling or posted building. Fifth-degree arson carries a maximum penalty of 90 days in jail and/or a $1,000 fine, while the trespassing charge is a gross misdemeanor punishable by up to 90 days in jail and/or a $1,000 fine.
The charges remain allegations, and Pererva is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.