Elgin man sent to prison for 2019 Ewing thefts

Two area men were sent to the Nebraska Penal and Correctional Complex at Lincoln last week for crimes committed in Holt County.

Kip V. Polston, 42, of Elgin appeared before the Honorable Mark Kozisek in the Holt County district courtroom in O’Neill for sentencing Jan. 11.

Kozisek sentenced Polston to two years in a facility under the jurisdiction of the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services, with credit for six days previously served. He was also fined $500 and assessed $139 costs of prosecution.

Provided he loses none of his good time, Polston must serve one year, less six days before his mandatory release.

Polston was convicted of 2019 thefts from a Ewing residence Oct. 5, 2020, after he reached a plea agreement with Holt County attorney Brent Kelly.

He faced three counts, Count I, burglary, a Class 2A felony; Count II, theft by unlawful taking, a Class 4 felony and Count III, false reporting, a Class 3 misdemeanor, relative to a March 4, 2019, burglary in Ewing.

Pursuant to the plea deal, Poston pleaded no contest to Count II, in exchange for Kelly dismissing counts I and III.

According to a probable-cause affidavit filed by Kelly, Holt County law enforcement investigated a burglary at the James Jessop residence in Ewing, where the items reported stolen included an Xbox, a 32-inch flat screen television, CDs and movies, two airsoft guns, with a bag, airsoft magazines and parts, and $300 cash.

The crime took place after Jessop received a phone call instructing him to travel to O’Neill to claim a prize. Officers found the front door of the residence had been forced open.

The firearms and accessories were recovered from an individual, who claimed they were given to him as a gift, by Polston, who was his employer. The witness also told officers he had been instructed by Polston to make the phone call to Jessop, as a “prank.”

Polston was represented by Holt County public defender Rod Smith of O’Neill. He was remanded to Holt County sheriff Ben Matchett’s custody for transport to Lincoln.

A 40-year old Atkinson man was sentenced in a 2017 sexual assault case involving a child, who was 15 at the time of the assault.

Preston D. Janzing faced Kozisek for sentencing on a Class 2 felony, criminal attempt of first-degree sexual assault of a child. The charge carried the potential for a 50-year term of incarceration.

The original charge was reduced, pursuant to a plea deal, from a 1B felony - first-degree sexual assault of a child - which carried the potential for a lifetime prison sentence.

In addition, Gail Ver Maas, assistant Nebraska attorney general, acting as special deputy Holt County attorney, dismissed a Class 3A felony, third-degree sexual assault of a child, as part of the agreement.

Kozisek ordered Janzing be committed to prison for not less than six years, nor more than eight years, with 13 days credit for time served before sentencing.

In reviewing the court’s findings, Kozisek noted Janzing had a prior sex offense conviction and is subject to lifetime community supervision by the Office of Parole Administration upon his release from incarceration and is required to register under the Sex Offender Registration Act.

Provided he loses none of his good time, Janzing must serve three years, less 13 days, before being eligible for parole, and four years, less 13 days, before his mandatory release.

Janzing was assessed $704 costs of prosecution.

He was remanded to Matchett’s custody for transport to Lincoln.

Janzing was represented by Smith with assistance from Ashley Boettcher of O’Neill.

At the request of Kelly, Holt County Judge Kale Burdick, on Oct. 28, 2019, appointed the Nebraska Attorney General and his designated assistants as special Holt County attorneys to prosecute the case. Ver Maas and Mariah Nichols were assigned to the case.