WILLMAR -- Cody Lyle Lawren Jackson, 19, of Atwater was sentenced Monday to five years of probation, a $500 fine and 190 days in jail on a felony theft charge for stealing auto parts from a Sunburg business and then selling the metal for scrap.
Jackson was given credit for 67 days served and the last 90 days of his jail time is staggered over the next year. He was also ordered to get a job and verify his employment.
He was also sentenced to a year and a day in jail, which was stayed, a $1,000 fine and five years of probation for burglarizing the Island Pines Golf Course in Atwater. Jackson was ordered to serve 88 days in jail, with credit for 59 days already served, and pay $1,692 in restitution to the golf course. The jail sentences will be served concurrently, or at the same time.
Jackson was also ordered to pay $1,165 in restitution in the metal theft case. He is jointly responsible for the restitution in both cases with co-defendant, Timothy Lee Smith, 21, of Litchfield.
The metal theft charges were filed after the owner of Jorgenson Auto Sales contacted the Kandiyohi County Sheriff's Office on March 15 to report that radiators and aluminum wheels were taken from a storage shed.
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Both contain a significant amount of valuable metal.
The next day, the man contacted law enforcement again, notifying investigators that he had found several of the wheels at Windy Hill Auto Parts of rural New London. He had also gotten a photocopy of a check and receipt for radiators and rims from the business to Jackson.
The next day, the owner and a detective from the sheriff's office interviewed Windy Hill personnel, who said another young man was with Jackson.
When interviewed, Jackson and Smith admitted to the thefts and using a bolt cutter to enter the shed. They said they were in Sunburg to visit someone and knew they could get money for the metal. Smith said they split the money from the sale.
The burglary charges were filed after a Kandiyohi County sheriff's deputy was dispatched to the golf course on May 5 on a burglary report. Golf clubs, money, video games and the keys to two golf carts were reported missing. The total value was estimated at $1,315.
The course manager also reported a golf cart had a bent axle and that the two missing keys were found in the pro shop.
Atwater Police Chief Reed Schmidt received information that Jackson and Smith were involved in the burglary.
He visited Smith at his home in Litchfield after a relative discovered golf clubs stashed in the rafters of the garage and observed golf balls in Smith's truck.
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Smith told Schmidt that the clubs were not his and belonged to Jackson. He said Jackson approached him to go to the golf club after discovering an unlocked door. He admitted they went inside and took pop and the golf clubs.
He said Jackson took the money. He allowed Schmidt to search his truck, and several boxes of golf balls were found in a tool box.
During an interview, Jackson admitted to stealing pop, candy, and the golf clubs and balls. He added that he and Smith drove the carts and into each other.
