Downtown break-in under investigation

In the early morning hours of Tuesday, April 4, a break-in occurred in downtown New Rockford.

The store broken into was Shear Delight, a salon in downtown New Rockford owned by Josolyn Collier.

According to Eddy County Sheriff Paul Lies, the break-in occurred sometime between the hours of 1 and 4 a.m. that morning. He said the burglar, or burglars, appear to have broken in by prying open the building’s back door.

An unspecified amount of cash was then stolen, said Lies.

As of press time, the sheriff’s department had yet to identify those responsible, but Lies did say that downtown surveillance camera footage had revealed “people of interest.”

Anyone with information about the break-in is encouraged to contact the Eddy County Sheriff’s Department at (701) 947-5515.

Meanwhile, the man who broke into a storage container in Sheyenne has pleaded guilty and been sentenced for attempted burglary.

According to court documents, a security camera showed Clark Baker grabbing a metal bar from a junk pile near Route 281 in Sheyenne and using it to break the lock on a storage container.

“The individual was then seen entering the storage unit, rummaging around, exiting the storage unit, and rummaging around several unlocked cars next to it, and then leaving the scene,” court documents state.

Baker was not believed to have stolen anything from the storage container or vehicles.

Baker was originally charged with burglary, but court records show that the charge was a clerical error. His charge was corrected to attempted burglary, a Class C felony, to which Baker pleaded guilty.

The charge was downgraded to a misdemeanor and Baker was assessed $570 in various fees. He was also ordered to pay $10 restitution to Jake Perleberg, the owner of the storage container and vehicles.

Baker was placed under unsupervised probation until March 3, 2024, during which time he may not own or possess any firearms.

Meanwhile, also receiving a sentence recently was Waylon Jack Stands, Jr., of Sheyenne.

In November of 2022, Stands was arrested and charged with aggravated assault - domestic violence, a Class C felony.

Court documents detail a brutal scene, which began after an argument about snapchat and after Stands returned home “heavily intoxicated” at 2 a.m. on November 22, 2022.

“The Defendant then grabbed Jane Doe and threw her onto their bed where he began hitting her,” state court documents. “... Jane Doe was able to exit the bedroom into the living room, but the Defendant followed her, picked her up, and threw her across the room, continuing to hit her.”

Court documents say at one point the victim managed to escape and get her kids in the house to safety. But that wasn’t the end of the attack.

“Jane Doe told law enforcement she grabbed a pair of the kids’ pants and a shirt and tried to get dressed to escape. The Defendant tore the shirt off of her, leaving her in her underwear,” continue the court documents. “She slipped on a pair of one of the kids’ shoes, which were too big for her, and ran out the door screaming for help.

“The Defendant followed her and once she tripped, he flipped her onto her back in the snow, kneeled on top of her, and began choking her with his hands around her neck, impairing the flow of air to her lungs.”

Court documents say that Stands’ father was eventually able to get his son off of Jane Doe long enough for her to escape to a neighbor’s house. She was then taken to the hospital in Carrington.

Stands later pleaded guilty to the charge of aggravated assault – domestic violence, which was downgraded to a misdemeanor.

Stands was assessed $750 in various fees and fines and placed under unsupervised probation until March 3, 2024. During that time he may not possess or own firearms, nor consume, possess or purchase alcohol, and must not violate any criminal laws.