MASON CITY – A man and a woman who committed a crime of opportunity when they grabbed an expensive musical instrument from a student who wasn’t looking and then tried to sell it to a music store earlier this year pled guilty to reduced charges after first facing felonies.
The incident took place back in February at a bus stop near 1st Street and Pierce Avenue in Mason City. A student set a saxophone valued at nearly $1,500 down on the sidewalk near bus stop. Police told NIT that “it was a windy, cold day so the kids stood around the corner, behind a building to get out of wind. That apparently is when someone came by and snatched the sax from sidewalk.”
After the theft, the stolen sax was presented for sale at a local music store by 69-year-old Keith Riser and 29-year-old Donyale Jones. Employees at “the music store looked at the sax, realized it was stolen, and called police,” a police spokesman told NIT.
After an investigation, Jones and Riser were arrested on charges of felony second-degree theft and taken to jail.
Weeks later, Riser was allowed to plead guilty to a reduced charge of third-degree theft. He was sentenced to 62 days in jail and ordered to pay $499.50 in court fees and surcharges.
Jones also was allowed to plead guilty to a reduced charge of third-degree theft. She was sentenced to a suspended 2-year prison sentence, one year of probation, and was ordered to pay $448.50 in court fees and surcharges.