The case involving the former Lakewood fire chief’s allegedly stealing funds from the department was apparently coming to a resolution at midweek.
Christopher E. Thomson, 42, faces 22 felony counts in all — 10 counts of identity theft, 10 counts of forgery-uttering, and single counts of theft in a business setting and fraud against a financial institution, in connection with incidents alleged to have occurred between 2020 and 2024.
During a brief appearance before Oconto County Judge Michael Judge on March 3, District Attorney Hannah Schuchart said she had just delivered a plea offer to defense attorney Nicole Morley.
The offer was delayed while the state worked on firming up the amount of restitution that Thomson will owe, she said. The Town of Lakewood reported a final number of $128,339.49.
“We were verifying with Laona State Bank what amount they may be outstanding, if any; we have not received that information to date,” Schuchart said.
Morley said Thomson is willing to stipulate to the restitution amount.
“I anticipate that this (offer) is something we will be accepting, and we’ll be asking for some time for me to prepare a plea form with my client,” Morley said.
The two attorneys asked for a brief postponement of the plea hearing, and Judge scheduled a new hearing for 10:30 a.m. March 5.
Although the matter was on the court calendar as a plea and sentencing hearing, Judge said he plans to accept the plea but order a pre-sentence investigation, which generally takes several weeks to two months.
According to the criminal complaint, Thomson was named treasurer of the Lakewood Fire Department Association in January 2020. The association is a separate entity from the department itself. Thomson became fire chief in 2022 upon the retirement of the former chief.
The Lakewood Town Board placed Thomson on unpaid administrative leave May 13, 2024, and he resigned as chief shortly thereafter, the complaint said.
An ensuing investigation by the Oconto County Sheriff’s Department concluded that over a four-year period, using the association’s checking account and debit card, Thomson had taken at least $100,000 from the nonprofit organization that holds donations and fundraising proceeds for the fire department.
He was arrested Nov. 15 and has been in custody at the Oconto County Jail since then in lieu of a $10,000 cash bond.
Thomson sent a letter from the county jail to Judge on Jan. 20 apologizing for his behavior and saying, “I’m willing to do anything for a chance to pay $500 monthly payments.”
The former chief said he was trying to make ends meet and support his family, but he “screwed up and totally did wrong” instead of asking for help.
wbluhm@newmedia-wi.com
Thomson to enter plea
