| NEWS | Goar Investigations Coin-Op from p 14 that day in early March, according to the police report. Investigators later matched the serial numbers on the bills to Krigman. The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office arrested Woodrel at the scene that same day on suspicion of felony theft, but cited and released him after he complained of high blood pressure, according to the po- lice report. Woodrel told sheriff deputies that the money was a gift, court and police records show. He and Nazarchuk ditched their Queen Creek attorney and hired prominent Phoenix law firm Wilenchik & Bartness to fight the case. The couple’s attorney, Jack Wilenchik, said in an interview that he’s holding to that defense. A Gift Or Not? Cuffed in the back of a squad car, Woodrel told Deputy Jesus J. Cosme that he had Krigman’s blessing to help himself to $1,000 for a trip to Tucson, according to police records. Woodrel told deputies that Krigman was “telling a shitload of lies” but claimed he wasn’t sure how he got into the home. “He had been arguing with his wife, so he had not been thinking straight,” accord- ing to the police report. The video shows that, once inside Krigman’s home, Woodrel tried unsuccess- fully to enter two locked rooms. “I asked Tony what [was] in the rooms, and he stated $250,000 worth of coins,” Cosme wrote in his report. Woodrel and Nazarchuk often kept some of Krigman’s coins in their own home in order to sell them. “Tony said that if he wanted to steal coins from Jerry, he would do it from his own home and not Jerry’s,” the police re- port quoted him as saying. But, when deputies confronted Woodrel and demanded he empty his pockets, he tried to hide the $1,000, ac- On security tape, Tony Woodrel is seen in the garage of Jerry Krigman’s Fountain Hills home. cording to the report. “He said he was stressed and upset, thinking why he was getting arrested,” the report reads. No Jail, Judge or Jury Yet The sheriff’s department referred a felony charge to the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office for consideration. Deputy County Attorney Jeremy D. Miller was the one who opted not to prosecute. “We declined charges because of no reasonable likelihood of conviction at trial,” MCAO spokesperson Jennifer Liewer said, without elaborating, in keep- ing with department policy about com- menting on open cases. Not only did Miller decline prosecution, but the statute of limitations for town pros- ecutors to file criminal misdemeanor charges also ran out. Fountain Hills Town Prosecutor Mark Iacovino was fuzzy on the details about the case but clearly remembered his reaction when Krigman pushed for a trial. “I recall my having serious doubts about whether this case could be successfully prosecuted criminally,” Iacovino said. The Scottsdale-based lawyer said that, in his experience, juries are less sympa- thetic to theft crimes that involve close friends. “That might have had an impact on” his decision, Iacovino said. Friends in High Places Wilenchik described the lawsuit as “sala- cious and false.” He said Krigman is trying to “shame Woodrel into paying him with- out having to actually prove his claims to a judge or jury.” In a court filing, Wilenchik listed his former client, Fountain Hills resident and “America’s Toughest Sheriff” Joe Arpaio as a prospective witness in the case. >> p 19 with mattress 2pc sectional 5pc dinette DELIVERY AVAILABLE Box and mattress VALLEY-WIDE Bunk-Bed-Frame 4pc bedroom set 5 drawer chest CALL FOR PRICING mon-THU: 9AM - 7PM fri: 9AM - 7PM sat: 9AM - 6PM sun: 10AM - 5PM 3330 w Van Buren St • Phoenix • 602-272-0034 (NE Corner of 35th Ave & Van Buren) *prices are subject WESTSIDEFURNITURE.COM 17 CHEST phoenixnewtimes.com | CONTENTS | FEEDBACK | OPINION | NEWS | FEATURE | NIGHT+DAY | CULTURE | FILM | CAFE | MUSIC | PHOENIX NEW TIMES JAN 20TH– JAN 26TH, 2022
