State files charges against Kewaunee County dairy farm owner, manure hauler

Brandon Hardaway, William Johns, and Evan Reynolds' cases were indicted with manslaughter after the death of a man in custody with the Crestview Police Department last year.(MGN)
Published: Dec. 5, 2022 at 1:16 PM CST

KEWAUNEE COUNTY, Wis. (WBAY) - The Wisconsin Department of Justice has filed charges against a Kewaunee County dairy farm owner and a manure hauler for allegedly conspiring to submit a forged report to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.

The charges were filed in Kewaunee County Court against Gregory R. Stodola and Stodola Ag. Transport, Johannes W. Wakker, and Benjamin Todd Koss.

The complaint alleges Johannes Wakker, owner of a Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation, needed to get rid of excess manure in late 2019 and hired Gregory Stodola to spread manure on Wakker’s land.

“Stodola spread the manure on several fields, the complaint alleges, but the amount so far exceeded what Wakker’s permit allowed that it resulted in pollution discharges into tributaries leading to Lake Michigan with E. Coli bacteria readings as much as 100 times those that would result in the closure of a public beach,” reads a statement from the Wisconsin Department of Justice.

The statement continues, “Because the large amount of manure spread on the Wakker farm exceeded the amount allowed by Wakker’s DNR permit, the complaint alleges that Stodola created a document that grossly underreported the manure actually spread—by over 1.9 million gallons. Stodola then gave this document to Wakker, the complaint alleges, who in turn gave it to defendant Benjamin Koss, a consultant hired by Wakker to file a required report about the manure spreading with DNR. According to the complaint, knowing that the information was false, Koss manipulated the numbers even further to ‘calibrate the books’ such that the reported numbers would fit within DNR regulations before filing a report with the false information with DNR.”

Stodola, Wakker, and Koss are scheduled to appear in Kewaunee County Court on Jan. 12.

CLICK HERE to read the complaint.

LIST OF CHARGES IN COMPLAINT

COUNT 1: Conspiracy to Commit a Crime (as to Johannes W. Wakker, Gregory R. Stodola, and Benjamin Todd Koss) Between on or about December 5, 2019, through on or about March 3, 2020, in Kewaunee County, State of Wisconsin, Defendants Johannes W. Wakker, Gregory R. Stodola, and Benjamin Todd Koss, with intent that a crime be committed, agreed or combined with another for purpose of committing that crime, with one or more of the parties to the conspiracy doing an act to effect its object, to wit, being directors, officers, managers, agents or employees of any corporation or limited liability company, the Defendants agreed or combined with another for the purpose of falsifying a record, account, or other document belonging to that corporation or limited liability company, by alteration, false entry, or omission, or made, circulated, or published any written statement regarding the corporation or limited liability company which they knew was false, namely the 2020 Wakker Dairy Manure Hauling Report submitted to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. This is a Class H felony in violation of Wis. Stat. §§ 939.31 and 943.39(1), an offense punishable by a fine of up to $10,000, or imprisonment not more than six years, or both, pursuant to Wis. Stat. § 939.50(3)(h).

COUNT 2: Fraudulent Writing, PTAC (as to Johannes W. Wakker) On or about March 3, 2020, in Kewaunee County, State of Wisconsin, Defendant Johannes W. Wakker, as party to a crime, being a director, officer, manager, agent or employee of any corporation or limited liability company, falsified a record, account, or other document belonging to that corporation or limited liability company by alteration, false entry, or omission, or made, circulated or published any written statement regarding the corporation or limited liability company which he knew was false, namely the 2020 Wakker Dairy Manure Hauling Report submitted to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. This is a Class H felony in violation of Wis. Stat. §§ 943.39(1) and 939.05, an offense punishable by a fine of up to $10,000, or imprisonment not more than six years, or both, pursuant to Wis. Stat. § 939.50(3)(h).

COUNT 3: Fraudulent Writing, PTAC (as to Gregory R. Stodola) On or about March 3, 2020, in Kewaunee County, State of Wisconsin, Defendant Gregory R. Stodola, as party to a crime, being a director, officer, manager, agent or employee of any corporation or limited liability company, falsified a record, account, or other document Case 2022CF000096 Document 2 Filed 12-02-2022 Page 2 of 21 3 belonging to that corporation or limited liability company by alteration, false entry, or omission, or made, circulated or published any written statement regarding the corporation or limited liability company which he knew was false, namely the 2020 Wakker Dairy Manure Hauling Report submitted to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. This is a Class H felony in violation of Wis. Stat. §§ 943.39(1) and 939.05, an offense punishable by a fine of up to $10,000, or imprisonment not more than six years, or both, pursuant to Wis. Stat. § 939.50(3)(h).

COUNT 4: Fraudulent Writing, PTAC (as to Benjamin Todd Koss) On or about March 3, 2020, in Kewaunee County, State of Wisconsin, Defendant Benjamin Todd Koss, as party to a crime, being a director, officer, manager, agent or employee of any corporation or limited liability company, falsified a record, account, or other document belonging to that corporation or limited liability company by alteration, false entry, or omission, or made, circulated or published any written statement regarding the corporation or limited liability company which he knew was false, namely the 2020 Wakker Dairy Manure Hauling Report submitted to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. This is a Class H felony in violation of Wis. Stat. §§ 943.39(1) and 939.05, an offense punishable by a fine of up to $10,000, or imprisonment not more than six years, or both, pursuant to Wis. Stat. § 939.50(3)(h).

COUNT 5: Fraudulent Writing (as to Gregory R. Stodola) Between on or about December 5, 2019, through on or about December 13, 2019, in Kewaunee County, State of Wisconsin, Defendant Gregory R. Stodola being a director, officer, manager, agent or employee of any corporation or limited liability company, falsified a record, account, or other document belonging to that corporation or limited liability company by alteration, false entry, or omission, or made, circulated or published any written statement regarding the corporation or limited liability company which he knew was false, namely a document referred to by the Defendant as the “Untitled Document” wherein the Defendant provided false information regarding the amount of manure he spread per day and the location in which that manure was spread, pertaining to fields MP 1, AS 1, MP 6, Koss 4, BD 9-10, MP 11-12, Koss 1 and Koss 2. This is a Class H felony in violation of Wis. Stat. §§ 943.39(1), an offense punishable by a fine of up to $10,000, or imprisonment not more than six years, or both, pursuant to Wis. Stat. § 939.50(3)(h). Case 2022CF000096 Document 2 Filed 12-02-2022

COUNT 6: Discharging Pollutants into Waters of the State (PTAC) (as to Gregory R. Stodola and Stodola Ag. Transport) Between on or about December 5, 2019, through on or about December 8, 2019, Defendants Gregory R. Stodola and Stodola Ag. Transport, as parties to the crime, in Kewaunee County, State of Wisconsin, did willfully or negligently discharge a pollutant into waters of the State of Wisconsin, without a permit issued by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, to wit: the discharge of animal manure into waters of the State, namely, an unnamed tributary to Lake Michigan (WBIC 5019251). This is in violation of Wis. Stat. §§ 283.31(1), 283.91(3), and 939.05, an offense punishable by a fine of not less than $10 nor more than $25,000 for each day of violation or imprisonment for not more than six months, or both. If the conviction is for a violation committed after a first conviction of such person under this subsection, the person shall be fined not less than $10 nor more than $50,000 per day of violation or imprisoned for not more than one year in the county jail or both.

COUNT 7: Discharging Pollutants into Waters of the State (PTAC) (as to Gregory R. Stodola, and Stodola Ag. Transport) On or about December 7, 2019, in Kewaunee County, State of Wisconsin, Defendants Gregory R. Stodola and Stodola Ag. Transport, as parties to the crime, did willfully or negligently discharge a pollutant into waters of the State of Wisconsin without a permit issued by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, to wit: the discharge of animal manure into waters of the State, namely, an unnamed tributary to Lake Michigan (WBIC 90400). This is in violation of Wis. Stat. §§ 283.31(1), 283.91(3), and 939.05, an offense punishable by a fine of not less than $10 nor more than $25,000 for each day of violation or imprisonment for not more than six months, or both. If the conviction is for a violation committed after a first conviction of such person under this subsection, the person shall be fined not less than $10 nor more than $50,000 per day of violation or imprisoned for not more than one year in the county jail or both. COUNT 8: Discharging Pollutants into Waters of the State (PTAC) (as to Gregory R. Stodola, and Stodola Ag. Transport) Between on or about December 8, 2019, through on or about December 9, 2019, in Kewaunee County, State of Wisconsin, Defendants Gregory R. Stodola and Stodola Ag. Transport, Case 2022CF000096 Document 2 Filed 12-02-2022 Page 4 of 21 5 as parties to the crime, did willfully or negligently discharge a pollutant into waters of the State of Wisconsin without a permit issued by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, to wit: the discharge of animal manure into waters of the State, namely, an unnamed tributary to Lake Michigan (WBIC 90400). This is in violation of Wis. Stat. §§ 283.31(1), 283.91(3), and 939.05, an offense punishable by a fine of not less than $10 nor more than $25,000 for each day of violation or imprisonment for not more than six months, or both. If the conviction is for a violation committed after a first conviction of such person under this subsection, the person shall be fined not less than $10 nor more than $50,000 per day of violation or imprisoned for not more than one year in the county jail or both.