Richland County District Court Judge Bradley Cruff has changed the bail order for Anthony Eugene Kruger, 33, Breckenridge, Minnesota.
A hearing was held Tuesday, Feb. 7, one day after the Richland County State’s Attorney’s Office motioned that a murder charge against Kruger be dismissed without prejudice. The “without prejudice” clause is crucial.
“It allows us to recharge the offense without having a double jeopardy concern,” State’s Attorney Megan Kummer said. “If the charge was dismissed with prejudice, it would not be able to return before the court.”
Kruger, as of Feb. 7, is charged with possession of methamphetamine with intent to deliver, a class B felony, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, a class C felony. The charges and the previous charge for murder, a class AA felony, are related to a Jan. 16, 2023 incident in Wahpeton.
Bond, previously set by Judge Cruff at $1 million cash or surety, is now $15,000 cash or surety with conditions. They include drug testing and house arrest in Minnesota upon Kruger’s release from the Richland County Jail.
On Tuesday, Kummer and attorney Jonathan Green briefly discussed the likelihood of Kruger being a flight risk from the state of Minnesota. Green is named in court records as being retained for the defense.
Asked to comment on why the murder charge was dismissed without prejudice, Kummer referred to a Monday, Feb. 6 statement by Wahpeton Police Chief Matthew Anderson. Kummer also said she worked with Anderson on the statement.
“The investigation has been ongoing since Jan. 16, 2023 with the Wahpeton Police Department and the North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation working a joint investigation into the murder of Jeremiah Medenwald,” Anderson stated. “At this time, the complexities of the investigation have made it so that the state feels that waiting on all outstanding information, search warrants and ongoing interviews are in the interest of ensuring a successful prosecution against the person responsible.”
Anderson, on Tuesday, reiterated that the Wahpeton Police Department believes Medenwald’s murder was an isolated incident and that the public is not in any danger.
“He’s still a person of interest,” Anderson said about Kruger. “The investigation has not changed and is continuing.”
The Wahpeton Police Department continues to ask that anyone with information about Jeremiah Medenwald in the days preceding Jan. 16, 2023, and information regarding Anthony Kruger from Jan. 16-20, 2023, contact Sgt. Rick Teberg at 701-642-7728.
A preliminary hearing and/or arraignment for Kruger is scheduled for Monday, March 6. As of 7 a.m. Thursday, Feb. 9, he was confined in the Richland County Jail.
