Letcher Man Sentenced for Concealing Person from Arrest

U.S. Attorney Brendan V. Johnson announced that a Letcher, South Dakota man charged with concealing a person from arrest was sentenced on November 7, 2011, by U.S. District Judge Lawrence L. Piersol. Theodore J. Nelson, Jr., a/k/a Ted Nelson, age 64, was sentenced to 12 months plus one day in custody with credit for time served, two years of supervised release, and a $100 assessment to the Victim Assistance Fund.

Nelson was indicted for concealing person from arrest and accessory after the fact to failure to appear by a federal grand jury on April 6, 2011. As part of his plea, Nelson admitted that he harbored and concealed Thomas R. Kelley. Kelley was convicted of 22 separate federal crimes, then failed to appear at his August 23, 2010, sentencing hearing. Kelley was ultimately found in Wood Lake, Minnesota, on December 22, 2010. Nelson pled guilty to concealing person from arrest on August 22, 2011.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation, United States Marshal Service, the Minnehaha County Sheriff’s Office, and the Criminal Investigation Division of the Internal Revenue Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kevin Koliner prosecuted the case.

Nelson was immediately turned over to the custody of the U.S. Marshal.