36-year-old Wisconsin man sentenced for stealing construction equipment from site of Menominee Indian High School
MILWAUKEE, Wis. (WFRV) – A 36-year-old Wisconsin man was sentenced to federal prison following a conviction for theft at a local high school construction site.
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Wisconsin announced that Merwin “Pete” Wynos, 36, a former resident of Keshena and an enrolled member of the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin, received a two-and-a-half-year prison sentence imposed on March 20.
Wynos entered a guilty plea for the crime back on January 16, 2024, and following the completion of his sentence, he will face three years of supervised release.
Court records show on September 25, 2023, several companies reported thefts of equipment from the site of the new Menominee Indian High School in Keshena.
Investigators for the Menominee Tribal Police Department and the Menominee County Sheriff’s Office discovered that Wynos had entered the closed, fenced, and locked construction site during the night hours.
He used a utility vehicle on the site to transport construction tools and electronics that he took from construction trailers to his residence.
Wynos then attempted to sell some of the items at local pawn shops, which reported their suspicions to the local authorities. The 36-year-old was arrested after being caught with others in a car full of stolen construction tools.
After being released from custody, Wynos was caught on the site taking additional items again on November 25, 2023. He was caught on the site again and re-arrested.
Wynos admitted in court to being responsible for three separate theft incidents on the construction site and will pay over $29,000 in restitution to the victims.
At the sentencing, Judge William Griesbach noted the need to punish Ynos for the persistent nature of his crimes.
“Stealing from hard-working people, especially those building a new school that will help your community, shows a persistent willingness to violate the law,”
Additionally, Judge Griesbach also described the need to show the community that there is a punishment for this sort of behavior.
