By Steve Prestegard
Platteville Journal
PLATTEVILLE — A 61-year-old Benton man faces two sets of drug-related charges with two different sets of people.
Theodore Charles Kieler faces felony charges of party to delivering methamphetamine, party to maintaining a drug-trafficking place, party to possession of methamphetamine with intent to deliver and possession of meth paraphernalia, and a misdemeanor charge of resisting or obstructing an officer.
Those charges were the result of an April 16 search of a trailer in the Evergreen Village Mobile Home Park in the Town of Belmont.
Green County and Lafayette County deputies and the Richland/Iowa/Grant Drug Task Force executed the warrant at about 6:30 a.m. on the trailer at 30972 County XX, Lot 318, and arrested Kieler.
Becky Jo Wunderlin, 39, Platteville, faces two felony charges of party to delivering 3 to 10 grams of methamphetamine and party to maintaining a drug-trafficking place along with a misdemeanor bail jumping.
After a warrant for Wunderlin’s arrest was filed in December, Wunderlin’s attorney filed a motion to dismiss the charges. A hearing on the motion is scheduled for Feb. 10.
The home did not have an active meth lab, according to Lafayette County Sheriff Reg Gill. The charges “stem from the investigation that confirmed he was purchasing and redistributing” the drug.
Wunderlin also is facing possible forgery charges in Grant County after police received a report of the use of two counterfeit bills at a business Dec. 4.
Kieler waived his right to a preliminary hearing April 27 and stood mute to the charges June 10.
Another occupant of the residence, Susan A. Redfearn, 49, was detained and later released.
Redfearn then was charged in Iowa County with misdemeanor bail jumping for an incident June 20. A plea/sentencing hearing is scheduled for Feb. 24.
Redfearn separately was charged in Grant County with possession of methamphetamine for an incident Oct. 31. A status conference is scheduled for Feb. 18.
Redfearn also has a pending Iowa County disorderly conduct charge.
Kieler and two other people — David Michael Hudnut, 42, Benton, and Miranda Jean Muchow, 28, Dickeyville — then were arrested after a late November search of a rural Benton property led to an investigation of methamphetamine sales.
Kieler, Hudnut and Muchow were charged with felony charges of party to delivering methamphetamine, party to maintaining a drug-trafficking place, and party to possession of methamphetamine with intent to deliver.
Kieler also was charged with three counts of felony bail jumping, while Hudnut was charged with four counts of felony bail jumping and Muchow was charged with two counts of felony bail jumping.
Kieler waived his right to a preliminary hearing on the November charges Dec. 9, when his attorney also requested a new judge in the case. He pleaded not guilty to the charges Thursday in front of the case’s new judge, Dane County Circuit Judge John Hyland. A status conference is scheduled for March 3.
Hudnut waived his right to a preliminary hearing and pleaded not guilty Dec. 17. A status conference is scheduled for Feb. 16.
Muchow waived her right to a preliminary hearing and pleaded not guilty to all six charges Jan. 26. Upon Muchow’s motion the judge in the case was changed from Jorgenson to Green County Circuit Judge James Beer.
On Nov. 18, a confidential source made a purchase of 7.39 grams of methamphetamine for $350 from Kieler, Hudnut, and Muchow.
The search warrant found 46.8 grams of methamphetamine, smoking devices, syringes, ammunition, shotguns, a digital scale, phones and plastic bags.
Hudnut faces similar charges in Iowa County for delivering methamphetamine and in possession of amphetamine, LSD or psilocin from 2019.