Man charged with assaulting, kidnapping woman

A Carlton County man is in jail after allegedly holding, assaulting and threatening a woman — known to him — against her will for five days at his home northwest of Cloquet.

Dennis Alan Oberg, 27, was charged April 29 with four felonies in Sixth District Carlton County Court, including kidnapping, felony domestic assault, threats of violence and false imprisonment. He remains in jail, with bail set at $7,500 with conditions or $75,000 without conditions.

According to the criminal complaint, the woman told police that she willingly went to Oberg’s home at 665 Kallstrom Road on April 18, as the two had been involved in a casual sexual relationship for approximately a month. She stayed for several days, but things turned violent on April 21, when she said she wanted to go home.

The alleged victim said Oberg then became jealous and began searching through her phone, making alleged statements like ““if you do this or that, just know I’ll kill you. I have guns and I have family,” telling her not to leave or call the cops.

According to the criminal complaint, she said he begged her to stay moments after allegedly punching her in the back of the head. He also allegedly threw rocks at her, pulled some of her hair out and grabbed her by the arm to try to take her phone away.

The victim said she didn’t call the police for fear he would kill her with the .22 rifle that he either carried around or kept next to the stove.

She also claimed that Oberg boasted about beating up his ex-girlfriend and repeatedly threatened to kill her if she called the cops. He also allegedly hit her in the head with his phone multiple times, so hard that the screen broke. The woman said she feared for her life, but Oberg “was always around so she couldn’t leave or call for help.”

She finally got away from Oberg on April 26, when she was able to wake up and charge her phone while he was still sleeping. At that time she called for help from her cousin, who picked her up, fleeing quickly. He was also interviewed by police.

Police observed multiple bumps and significant bruises on the victim’s body.

In an interview with police, Oberg said the woman bruises easily and denied hurting her. He also denied threatening her, although he did admit to shooting his rifle in front of her. He also admitted to calling her derogatory names and having a tug of war over his phone that caused it to crack even more.

Oberg made an initial appearance via remote hearing from jail on Wednesday. An omnibus hearing is set for 10 a.m. June 10 in Carlton County Court.

Oberg was previously convicted of violating a domestic abuse no contact order two different times in 2021.