An Austin man and his nephew from Faribault who were accused of breaking into a vacant house in Lansing Township have entered not guilty pleas in Mower County Court.

Joshua David Bollinger, 33, and Dyllon David Jorgenson, 19, both pleaded not guilty to all charges against them on Thursday. Bollinger faces three counts of felony burglary and one count of misdemeanor theft. His nephew, Jorgenson, was charged with two counts of burglary and one of misdemeanor theft.

The incident in question took place around noon on May 15. According to a court complaint, a woman who owns a vacant house in the 4000 block of 20th Avenue NW in Lansing Township had gone to check on the property. When she entered the home, she heard someone in the basement.

While she was on the phone with police, she spotted someone, later identified as Jorgenson, driving by slowly. He then allegedly picked up Bollinger at an in-drive about 150 feet from the house.

Mower County Sheriff’s deputies located the men on County Road 27. Officers saw the men throwing items out of the passenger window, and later found unused syringes — determined to have been taken from the vacant house — in the ditch.

When officers interviewed Bollinger, he denied ever going in the house, although his shoe prints matched those found at the scene. Jorgenson admitted to police that the syringes had been taken from the house.

Police later spoke with a third person who was not identified in the court complaint. She said she went with Bollinger and Jorgenson to the house but had left to go to work before the police arrived. According to court documents, Bollinger and Jorgenson told her the house was abandoned and she “could take anything” she wanted. She gave law enforcement a small picture frame she had taken from the house.

Jury trials for both men are scheduled to begin August 15.