Lake Wilson bar burglary nets arrests

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LAKE WILSON — An Edgerton couple got out on bond late last week after being arrested in connection with the Buffalo Ridge Bar burglary in Lake Wilson.

According to court documents, Oscar and Denise Bishop paid $2,000 each to bond out of the Nobles County Jail, where they had been housed since their arrest at the beginning of the month.

The complaint states authorities were called to Lake Wilson the morning of July 28 after the manager of the bar alerted them to a possible burglary.

The employee who opened the bar that Monday morning, Denise Bishop, said the side door was open and the money box was missing, but the Murray County deputy could find no sign of a forced entry.

The manager did a quick inventory and discovered four cases of beer and five liquor bottles missing, along with more then $2,000 in cash.

Within days of the burglary, the manager had received a phone call from a tipster who said Denise and Oscar Bishop had conspired to commit the crime.

Denise had worked at the bar the Saturday before the burglary, and told authorities she had taken a friend to the hospital that night to have a baby, then worked another job in Pipestone. She said she spend Sunday in Sioux Falls, S.D.

But an informant told authorities Denise had given her money but told her not to spend any in Lake Wilson, and had informed her their money problems were over for a while. The informant said on Aug. 9, Denise told her she and Oscar had robbed the liquor store.

The bar manager also spoke to an informant, who said Denise would try to put all the blame on Oscar and that the couple was preparing to leave for another state if authorities got too close.

Oscar and Denise are each charged with one count of theft and receiving stolen property. They face a maximum combined penalty of 10 imprisonment and/or $20,000 in fines.

They were each granted a public defender and will make their next court appearances Sept. 29 in Murray County District Court.

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