(Spirit Lake)– A former General Manager of KUOO/KUQQ was sentenced Monday in Dickinson County District Court. Mike Puetz pleaded guilty to one count of theft in the first degree…a class “C” felony. In exchange, another count of ongoing criminal conduct…a class “B” felony…was dismissed. Any jail time was suspended and Puetz was placed on probation. He had originally pleaded not guilty to both charges. Judge Don Courtney ruled in favor of a deferred judgement, meaning Puetz’s record will be cleansed if he has no further violations during his probation. Assistant Dickinson County Attorney John Martin argued against any deferral, saying it would send the wrong message to the community. However Judge Courtney said he’s confident Puetz will successfully complete his probation and doesn’t see him re-offending.
Puetz had been accused of misappropriating 32,021-dollars from 2000 until September, 2005. The missing money was turned up in an internal audit of the station’s finances. At Monday’s hearing, Puetz admitted using the money for personal vacations. He apologized for his actions, saying it was shere stupidity on his part. He added “everybody makes mistakes, I made a couple of doozies and I’m very, very sorry for it”.
Puetz has since made full restitution of the 32,021-dollars.
It’s believed Puetz will serve his probation in Arizona, where he and his wife now reside.
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