A former Ramsey County deputy has pleaded guilty to theft, stemming from allegations that he stole and pawned evidence in cases he was supposedly investigating.
Thomas Keith Rudenick, 56, of Hugo was charged in July with theft and police officer misconduct.
As part of a plea deal, he entered his guilty plea to the felony theft charge Oct. 22, and the remaining count, a gross misdemeanor, will be dismissed at his Dec. 18 sentencing hearing.
Under the plea agreement, his sentence will be capped at 30 days, and he has promised to pay restitution to victims.
Rudenick, who joined the sheriff’s office in 1989, retired Feb. 1.
According to the criminal complaint:
Rudenick’s department colleagues divvied up items and files left in his office after he retired and began checking on cases that appeared to be unresolved.
In one case, an officer called the victim of a residence theft to confirm Rudenick had returned her items and learned that he had not.
The items had not been entered into evidence, so the officer checked the automated pawn system and discovered Rudenick had pawned items matching those reported stolen in the case.
The Washington County attorney’s office was asked to handle the investigation to avoid a conflict of interest.
In all, Rudenick pawned items valued at $4,600 to $5,200 between December 2014 and May 2015, according to the charges.
Elizabeth Mohr can be reached at 651-228-5162. Follow her at twitter.com/LizMohr.
