VanWeelden Faces Additional Charges

Willie VanWeelden is currently Chairman of the Mahaska County Supervisors

In papers filed in the Iowa District Court for Mahaska County, the State of Iowa accuses Mahaska County Supervisor, and defendant Henry W. VanWeelden of the following crimes:

Count 1 – (Theft in the First Degree)

The State of Iowa is claiming that between January 1, 2009 and March 31, 2011, VanWeelden did commit Theft in the First Degree by taking property. The state alleges that VanWeelden used public money in the form of insurance benefits that belonged to Mahaska County. The statement accuses VanWeelden of the theft “by obtaining the beneficial use of said property by deception; said property having a value in excess of $10,000”. This charge is a Class C Felony that could carry a maximum of 10 years imprisonment, and a fine not to exceed $10,000.

Count 2 – (Felonious Conduct in Office)

The State of Iowa in this charge claims that VanWeelden, “on or about or  between January 1, 2009 and January 31, 2009, did commit Felonious Misconduct in Office, by knowingly, as a public employee or officer, issuing a document falsely purporting to be a public document and/or knowingly, as a public employee or officer, delivering a falsified writing with the knowledge that the writing is falsified and that the writing will become a public record of a government body, in violation of Section 721.1 of the Iowa Criminal Code,” This charge is a Class D Felony that could carry a maximum of 5 years in imprisonment, and a fine not to exceed $7,500.

Count 3 -(Tampering with Records)

In the final charge, The State of Iowa claims that VanWeelden, “on or about or between January 1, 2009 and January 31, 2009, did commit Tampering with Records by, knowing he had no privilege to do so, falsifying a writing with the intent to deceive someone” (Mahaska County and or Auxiant). The charge states this would be an aggravated misdemeanor that could carry a maximum of 2 years imprisonment, and a fine not to exceed $5,000.

Arraignment for these charges is set for 9:30 a.m. May 23, 2011 at the Mahaska County Courthouse.

This story first broke the first part of April, and these charges are in addition to the first charge of Fraud. You can review the earlier story by visiting this LINK for a more information.

Mr. VanWeelden’s attorney’s reemphasized their statement about the charges against their client, “We believe the charges lack merit and think that will come out in time, given the nature of the criminal process. At this juncture we really can’t comment on that, unfortunately.”

A criminal charge is merely a criminal charge and not an indication of guilt. All suspects should be considered innocent until proven guilty.