The 25-year-old man who faces four car theft charges in Grant and Lafayette counties was indicted on the most recent charge Thursday.
A preliminary hearing was held in Grant County Circuit Court in Lancaster Thursday afternoon for Timmy Lansing Johnson Jr. on charges of bribery of a public official, a felony, and misdemeanor charges of taking and driving a vehicle without consent — abandoning a vehicle, disorderly conduct, and resisting or obstructing an officer.
Johnson, whose address was listed as Dickeyville on court records, will be arraigned on the charges Monday at 10:30 a.m. He is in the Grant County Jail in lieu of $2,500 cash bond.
Two days later, Johnson is scheduled for a preliminary hearing in Lafayette County Circuit Court in Darlington Wednesday at 8:15 a.m. on charges of taking and driving a vehicle without consent and felony bail jumping. That is also the scheduled time for a scheduling conference on an additional charge of driving or operating a vehicle without consent.
That afternoon, Johnson is scheduled to return to Grant County Circuit Court for a 2 p.m. status conference on three separate cases — driving or operating a vehicle without consent, fraud on a taxicab operator of up to $2,500, and three counts of misdemeanor bail jumping. Trial on those five charges is scheduled for April 22 and 29.
Between the pending Grant County charges and the pending Lafayette County charges, Johnson faces a maximum of 34 years 9 months in prison and up to $110,000 in fines.
In chronological order of alleged events, Johnson is accused of:
• Defrauding a taxicab operator Aug. 24, according to court records, for which Johnson pleaded not guilty Feb. 10.
• Taking a vehicle without consent in Lafayette County Aug. 29, for which Johnson pleaded not guilty Jan. 27.
• Taking a vehicle in Grant County Jan. 2, for which Johnson also pleaded not guilty Feb. 10.
• Taking a minivan parked at the Super 8 motel in Darlington and driving it to Platteville Feb. 24.
• Stealing a vehicle from a Dickeyville business, where its owner had parked it, and driving it to Platteville March 20.
A Grant County deputy was on patrol in Platteville that morning when he saw Johnson leave a Platteville house with “an elderly gentleman,” according to the Sheriff’s Office. The deputy detained Johnson as part of the investigation, and the vehicle was recovered on the UW–Platteville campus, where Johnson was taken to and then arrested.
While being transported to the Grant County Jail in Lancaster, Johnson “attempted to bribe the deputy into letting him go, including offering him a large amount of money,” the sheriff’s office said.
