Tim Ryan tryan@wolfrivermedia.com
Two men convicted of coming to Wittenberg in February with an arsenal packed in their vehicle to kidnap a relative were sentenced Thursday in Shawano-Menominee County Circuit Court.
Paul M. Neuman, 60, of Stacy, Minnesota, was sentenced to a total of 10 years in prison and 10 years’ extended supervision on felony counts of first-degree reckless endangerment and threatening force to intimidating a witness.
Neuman and Benjamin D. Sheldon, 32, also of Stacy, Minnesota, pleaded no contest to those charges in September.
Felony counts of burglary and attempted forceful taking of a child were dismissed as part of the plea agreement.
Sheldon was given a year in jail as a condition of eight years’ probation for his part in the incident. However, he would face the same prison sentence as Neuman if he violates the conditions of his probation.
Sheldon, who apologized for his actions in his statement to the court, calling it “a terrible mistake,” was considered by the prosecution and the court as having been along for the ride in what was Neuman’s idea.
Neuman offered no apologies in his statement to the court.
According to the criminal complaint, the men arrived at a residence on Mission Street shortly before 9 a.m. Feb. 9 armed with a sawed-off shotgun and other weapons to demand custody of Neuman’s grandson.
The residents were Neuman’s daughter and son-in-law, who attempted to defend themselves with a crossbow, according to the complaint.
The complaint states Sheldon rushed the son-in-law and was able to get the crossbow away from him, after which he allegedly held a gun to his head. The complaint also alleges Neuman held a gun on his daughter when she tried to call police.
Neuman’s son-in-law was able to go upstairs at one point during the encounter and called 911.
According to the complaint, Neuman told the couple he would return and kill them if he didn’t get custody of the child.
Shawano County sheriff’s deputies arrived as the men were getting back into their vehicles.
Deputies followed the vehicle a short distance until there was another squad on scene and conducted a traffic stop. The men surrendered without incident and were taken into custody.
Deputies found handguns on the men and numerous other weapons in the vehicle, according to the complaint, including a .380 caliber pistol, a .32 caliber Derringer pistol, a .357 revolver, a sawed-off shotgun, a rifle with scope, a Ruger LC9 pistol, multiple boxes of ammunition and magazines, brass knuckles, a Smith and Wesson knife set, and several other knives.