Boyceville truck thief bound over for trial

By LeAnn R. Ralph

MENOMONIE — A 30-year-old former Wheeler man now living in Knapp who is charged with stealing a pickup truck in Boyceville and eluding capture for several days is headed for trial in Dunn County Circuit Court.

Cody A. Metzger waived testimony during a preliminary hearing before Judge James Peterson May 9 and allowed the court to make the ruling on probable cause based on information in the criminal complaint.

Judge Peterson found that Metzger’s waiver of testimony was voluntary, found probable cause and bound Metzger over for trial.

Metzger is charged with one felony count of taking and driving a vehicle without the owner’s consent and two felony counts of bail jumping.

According to a news release from the Dunn County Sheriff’s Department, the incident started February 21 when the sheriff’s department received a report of a pickup truck stolen from the Village of Boyceville.

The incident ended several days later when the sheriff department’s K-9 officer located Metzger hiding in a pile of round bales at a farm on county Highway F.

The truck’s owner and a passenger also were taken into custody for firing rounds from handguns at the owner’s own stolen truck.

Metzger’s passenger, Paige M. Reaney, 22, was taken into custody where the stolen vehicle was located for being a passenger in a vehicle operated without the owner’s consent and for a probation hold, according to the news release.

During the course of their follow-up investigation, Dunn County deputies discovered that two men, the owner of the stolen vehicle, Robert J. Fawcett, age 22, and the passenger of the vehicle driven by the stolen vehicle’s owner, David W. Becker, age 27, had followed and pursued Fawcett’s stolen vehicle and had both fired several rounds from handguns from their moving vehicle at Fawcett’s stolen vehicle.

Fawcett is charged with felony first degree recklessly endangering safety and felony bail jumping.

Fawcett appeared with his attorney, William Schembera, May 9, and requested a new court date to give time for reviewing a plea deal and is scheduled for another hearing July 3.

Reaney pleaded not guilty to the charge March 21 and is scheduled for another court hearing June 9.

Becker is charged with one felony count of recklessly endangering safety and is scheduled for another court hearing June 13.

Court records list Boyceville addresses for Reaney, Fawcett and Becker.