WILLMAR -- A Madison man was sentenced and an accomplice in the crime pleaded guilty Sept. 26 in the May theft and arson of a van.
Daniel Aaron Wilson, 19, and Joshua Keelon Ezzell Hammond, 25, of Willmar both faced felony charges after the May 29 incident. Wilson was sentenced Sept. 26, while Hammond pleaded guilty to a felony charge of theft of a motor vehicle the same day.
Wilson, Hammond and Joshua Sheldon Christian, 24, of Wichita, Kan., were charged after the incident when the three men allegedly stole a van and eventually lit it on fire.
Wilson pleaded guilty Aug. 27 to a count of theft of a motor vehicle - liability of another and a misdemeanor count of falsely reporting a crime for his role in the incident. On Sept. 26, Judge Gerald J. Seibel sentenced Wilson to 30 days in jail, a fine of $1,000 and joint restitution for the destroyed van.
A stay of imposition was also issued on the felony charge as part of the plea agreement, along with a psychological assessment. The stay will allow Wilson to keep the felony off of his criminal record if he abides by the sentencing conditions.
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According to the criminal complaint, Kandiyohi County Sheriff 's deputies were called to the scene of a van engulfed in fire along 30th Street Southeast, just south of 45th Avenue Southeast. At the scene deputies found tread marks from another vehicle and footprints around the burned out van.
A witness saw a car following the van earlier, and reported the license plate to authorities. Authorities discovered the car alleged to be traveling with the van belonged to Wilson. Wilson originally told authorities that his car had been stolen on the night of May 29. However, police later matched Wilson's footprints to those found around the burned van.
During a later police interview, Wilson told detectives that he, Christian and Hammond had allegedly stolen the van from a turkey barn. Wilson told authorities that Hammond was the driver of the stolen vehicle.
At some point while driving the van, Hammond allegedly drove into the ditch and ran into a utility pole. According to the complaint, Wilson told officers that Hammond drove for a while before pulling over, dumping gasoline inside the van, and lighting it on fire.
Wilson is scheduled to be sentenced Oct. 24. As a part of the plea agreement Wilson asked for the restitution of the van to be shared jointly. Charges of second-degree arson and leaving the scene of property destruction were dismissed as part of the agreement.
The restitution amount has yet to be determined by the court.
The third alleged accomplice Christian was charged with two counts after the incident, including: second-degree arson -- liability for crimes of another and theft of a motor vehicle -- liability for crimes of another. According to court files, charges against Christian were continued for dismissal at an Aug. 7 omnibus hearing.
