By Denise Lana,
Courtroom sketch by Seth Boyes
Defendant Mindy Jones stood before a Fillmore County Court for the second time in fewer than six months as she pleaded guilty to theft and forgery charges.
Jones is expected to serve 27 months in prison as part of a plea agreement. She pleaded guilty to two of the 33 charges brought against her and was sentenced to 27 months for both — the remaining charges were dismissed as part of the plea arrangement. However, the state of Minnesota does not allow consecutive sentences, so Jones will serve her pair of 27-month jail terms simultaneously — she must serve at least 18 months before being eligible for supervised release, and she has been given 174 days credit for time served.
The theft and forgery charges Jones pleaded guilty to on Monday stemmed from incidents which occurred in 2021. At that time, Jones was living near Cresco with Bill Ondrashek Jr. She stole 11 paychecks belonging to Ondrashek between January and August of that year, forged his signature and deposited them into her personal and business accounts in Harmony, Minnesota. The total amount in checks stolen by Jones was a little more than $37,000 — nearly $27,000 into her Tin Rust consignment store and Harmony store account, $2,800 into a separate small business account and $7,300 into her personal account.
Ondrashek noticed the missing checks in June of 2022 and contacted his employer, ultimately revealing the theft.
Jones explained to the court on Monday how she falsely endorsed the checks, and she admitted her guilt for the record.
Fillmore County Attorney Brett Corson addressed the court on behalf of Ondrashek, who was not present Monday.
“He clearly feels betrayed, that she would take this money from him,” Corson said, adding that Ondrashek does hard labor at an area farm operation. “He has a business at the same time. He is very angry about it and frustrated, because he would like to see more of a consequence for Miss Jones.”
Jones was ordered to pay full restitution to Ondrashek, in addition to $430 in court fees — Corson expressed doubt Ondrashek will receive full repayment, noting such matters typically go to collections.
Ondrashek’s father, Bill Ondrashek Sr., said he too would have liked to see Jones receive a harsher jail sentence.
“I think it’s very unfair. She should have gotten a lot more time,” he said. “My son trusted her with his life. Just getting her totally out of his life and hopefully never having to ever see her again will be a great relief.”
Jones was convicted earlier this year of eight counts of felony theft at her business — a consignment store called Tin, Rust & Harmony — with locations in Waukon as well as Harmony, Minnesota. In 2021, Jones defrauded local artist Marsha Angell of more than $32,000 through bounced checks and false agreements. The business’ Waukon location was destroyed by fire which killed a dog in an upstairs apartment. The cause was later determined to be arson. After a year-long investigation, Jones was charged in Allamakee County with first-degree arson and animal abuse.
“I don’t think she got anywhere near enough time,” Angell said. “She has cost me more than $100,000 so far. This is behind us now and it’s in the past, but it’s hard to move on.”
Jones is scheduled to appear for trial in the arson case in February of 2025.
“I wake up every day and look to see if anyone else has filed a case against her,” said Angell. “We’ll see what happens in February.”
In September of 2022, Jones was also convicted of felony theft by swindle in Fillmore County after selling fake charity raffle tickets for a John Deere UTV. She was sentenced to work release and given a suspended prison sentence in that case.
Corson noted Monday’s conviction could potentially be used against Jones to impeach her credibility in any future cases and trials.
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What is the matter with the court system? Jones should get at least minimum of 25 years without the possibility of parole.