Boyceville man scheduled for two Dunn County trials this fall

By Cara L. Dempski

MENOMONIE — Zachary D. Morgan, age 31 of Boyceville, is headed to trial for multiple cases in Dunn County this fall.

Morgan stands accused of two counts of uttering a forgery, four counts of burglary of a building or dwelling, one count of theft of moveable property equal to or less than $2,500, one count of theft of moveable property between $2,500 and $5,000, one count of felony bail jumping, one count misdemeanor bail jumping, and one count of issuance of worthless checks less than or equal to $2,500.

The Boyceville man is scheduled for a final pre-trial conference on both forgery charges November 17 before the jury trial starts November 27. He is scheduled for a December 8, 2017, pre-trial conference regarding all other charges, with the trial scheduled to start December 18.

The first forgery charge stems from a check found during execution of a search warrant on the home Morgan shares with his significant other, Lori Klund. The August 2016 search was completed after Klund allegedly passed several pieces of counterfeit United States currency at two Boyceville businesses. A check for $2,500 made out to Morgan was discovered during the search.

Subsequent investigation of the check revealed the account it was drawn from was closed in 2011, and was issued by a company that closed prior to the check’s issued date of May 28, 2016. Boyceville police chief Greg Lamkin also indicated there were spelling and grammatical errors on the check, and those aroused suspicion the check was a forgery.

A second forgery charge was filed in early 2017. The Boyceville branch of Peoples State Bank notified Lamkin December 2, 2016, that Morgan opened a checking account in June 2015 using a $3,500 check as his first deposit.

The bank reported it closed the account June 25, 2015 after receiving notification the check used in the initial deposit was forged. Peoples State Bank informed Lamkin the suspect withdrew $3,400 from the account prior to its closure, effectively defrauding the bank.

Four burglary charges and two theft charges were filed by the Dunn County District Attorney’s Office in February of this year. The associated criminal complaint indicates Morgan confessed to participation in four burglaries and two thefts in the area surrounding the Village of Boyceville between October 2015 and December 2016.

The charge for issue of worthless checks stems from a November 2016 check written to the Village of Boyceville. The criminal complaint for the case indicates the Boyceville police chief was advised November 30, 2016, that Morgan had written a check to the Village of Boyceville which was returned.

Lamkin reportedly spoke with the village’s deputy clerk/treasurer, and was informed the village received a notice from Peoples State Bank of a returned check. The notice was dated November 28, and indicated the check was returned with notice the account was closed.

The complaint notes Lamkin inspected the notice, to which a copy of the check drawn upon a Royal Credit Union account and dated November 16, 2016, was attached.

The Boyceville police chief spoke with village clerk/treasurer Darlene Lee in early December. Lee told Lamkin she recalled Morgan bringing the check to the office on November 15, the day his water was scheduled to be shut off due to non-payment of a $158 balance.

She said she found Morgan’s happy demeanor unusual, as he wrote her a check for $200 and instructed her to put the remaining balance on his account.

Lamkin’s investigation led him to RCU, where credit union officials informed him there had been no activity on the account Morgan drew the money from since 2014, and the only recent activity was the check returned to the Village of Boyceville and another check written to Stockman’s Farm Supply November 16, 2016.

Morgan signed a $300 signature bond April 27, 2016, and a $500 signature bond October 11, 2016, both of which carried the condition that he not commit any new crimes. These bonds were still in effect November 15, 2016.

The two uttering charges are class H felonies and are penalized by a fine of no more than $10,000, six months imprisonment, or both; felony bail jumping is also a class H felony. Burglary of a building or dwelling is a class F felony, and could lead to up to 12 years, six months in prison, a fine of up to $25,000, or both.

Theft of moveable property valued between $2,500 and $5,000 is a class I felony punishable by up to $10,000 in fines, three years, six months imprisonment, or both, and theft of property equal to or less than $2,500 is a class A misdemeanor punishable by up to nine months imprisonment, $10,000 in fines, or both.

Issuance of a worthless check is also a class A misdemeanor, as is misdemeanor bail jumping.