A Mitchell woman charged with kidnapping and robbing a man has pleaded not guilty to both charges.
Vanessa Hakl, 36, pleaded not guilty Tuesday to first-degree kidnapping and first-degree robbery at the Davison County Public Safety Center in Mitchell.
The charges stem from a Sept. 22 incident in which Hakl and three others allegedly robbed a 66-year-old man in a Third Avenue apartment in Mitchell, stole his vehicle and left him naked in a Hanson County field. Hakl was arrested on Oct. 23 in Harvey, North Dakota.
Hakl’s attorney, Dava Wermers, asked for a reduction in Hakl’s $100,000 bond. Wermers said Hakl did not go to North Dakota to flee from authorities but instead traveled there to visit a friend’s children.
Judge Tim Bjorkman denied the request, as he considered Hakl, who moved to Tripp from Oregon a few months before the alleged incident, to be a flight risk.
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“It’s my concern she does pose a risk of flight, first of all, based upon she left the jurisdiction to go to North Dakota while charges were pending,” Bjorkman said. “I don’t think she has a stable environment in the community she claims she’s been living at.”
According to court disposition, Hakl was living with her father in Tripp and worked in Tripp and Delmont before moving into an apartment in Mitchell. Hakl allegedly robbed the man after he refused to help her pay rent, court documents state.
Danica Loseke, 35, Alex Rock, 28, Marco Sherman, 22, all of Mitchell, have all pleaded not guilty to the same charges.
First-degree kidnapping is a Class C felony, punishable upon conviction by up to life in prison and a $50,000 fine. First-degree robbery is a Class 2 felony, punishable upon conviction by up to 25 years in prison and a $50,000 fine.
A trial was scheduled for Hakl in February or March.
