Tim Ryan, tryan@wolfrivermedia.com
Text messages that include alleged discussions of the marijuana operation she is accused of running with her husband were entered into the court record Thursday at a preliminary hearing for Wendy Hofman.
Hofman, 53, and her husband, Daniel P. Hofman, 52, both of Bonduel, are among 10 people charged so far in what authorities have called one of the largest drug cases ever seen in Shawano County.
Shawano-Menominee County District Attorney Greg Parker referred to Daniel Hofman as the hub of the conspiracy during a court hearing last week for allegedly being the supplier of marijuana and hash oil that was being bought and sold by the other defendants.
He allegedly made numerous trips back and forth from Shawano County to California where the marijuana was being grown, according to the criminal complaint.
Wendy Hofman is accused of helping run the drug business and faces a felony count of conspiracy to deliver marijuana.
The state entered three exhibits into the court record at her preliminary hearing Thursday, including photos of an extraction machine allegedly used to make hash oil and an invoice for its purchase.
The state also entered a series of text messages between the Hofmans taken from Wendy Hofman’s cell phone.
Those messages include discussions of travel plans — including a change in plans that Wendy Hofman considered risky, according to the court exhibit — a trailer set up for storage and what was apparently at the time the latest hash oil results from the extraction machine.
Daniel Hofman wrote that the oil was 75.1 percent pure and contained no mold fungus or pesticides, according to the exhibit, though he added he hoped the results would be better.
The texts also discuss amounts of money owed the Hofmans by various other parties, including two that Wendy Hofman advises her husband to “stalk” because of money that hasn’t been paid.
There is also discussion of a possible investor who Daniel Hofman was apparently hoping could bankroll his operation, according to the text messages.
Wendy Hofman, who is being held on a $20,000 cash bond, was bound over for trial after Thursday’s preliminary hearing and is due back in court for arraignment on April 10.
Another alleged conspirator in the case, Calvin W. Berndt, 22, of Stevens Point, waived his preliminary hearing Thursday and is also scheduled for arraignment on April 10. He has posted a $25,000 cash bond.
Daniel Hofman, who is being held on a $25,000 cash bond, is scheduled for an adjourned initial appearance on Monday.
Others charged in the alleged conspiracy include Daniel and Wendy’s son, Kody P. Hofman, 26, of Bonduel; Jordan L. Weiss, 26, of Bonduel; Joshua M. Natzke, 24, of Shawano; Seth W. White, 28, of Bonduel; Brandon D. Scray-Bass, 23, of Green Bay; Anthony B. Kotula Jr., 21, of Gresham; and Thomas J. Rotter, 30, of Krakow.
Each could face a possible maximum 15 years in prison and $50,000 fine if convicted of conspiracy to deliver marijuana.