Jacksonville police have seen a rise in calls about people trespassing on vacant property, including a South Main Street property that caught fire this week.
Although no one was charged in the fire because authorities believe it was unintentional, one person was arrested on a trespassing charge.
Daniel A. Jensen, 30, who is homeless, was arrested at 8:49 a.m. Wednesday on a charge of criminal trespass to state-supported land. Police said he was inside a garage at 731 N. Main St., where the fire started in the garage before spreading to the house.
Jacksonville Fire Department Capt. Mike Hopper said the cause could not be determined because of the extent of damage to the structure.
Firefighters returned two more times Wednesday — at 12:59 p.m. and 1:57 p.m. — for reports of smoke, although there was no fire. Lt. Dan Klendworth said some remnants still were smoldering from the initial blaze.
The property is owned by Morgan County and was supposed to be vacant when the fire started, Jacksonville police Lt. Sean Walker said.
“He was there in the garage at the time of the fire, but left and he was picked up two blocks away,” Walker said.
It was the second time this week that Jensen was removed from the property, according to Jacksonville Police Department records. Police were called to the property about 11:06 p.m. Tuesday and Jensen was arrested on a trespassing charge.
Since May 22, there have been at least 10 calls in which police were asked to remove a homeless person or people from various apartments or houses, according to a Journal-Courier database. The newspaper has recorded 546 police calls involving homeless individuals since January 2025.
Firefighters were called earlier this week to a house in the 600 block of West Beecher Avenue. Someone had started a fire in a pot just outside the door. Neighbors said the house has been vacant for several months and was condemned by the city.
There have several incidents of people trespassing since the owners left, neighbors said.