GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) – A De Pere man is facing multiple charges for allegedly causing a hit-and-run crash in a vehicle he drove without a license three months before getting caught stealing items from a store.
21-year-old Dakota J. Jourdan is charged with 7 misdemeanor counts including hit-and-run/attended vehicle, 5th offense operating a motor vehicle while revoked, retail theft and obstructing an officer.
According to the first criminal complaint, Green Bay police were called on February 4 for a hit-and-run crash on E. Mason Street.
A caller said that a black SUV had hit her car and left. The victim told an officer that she was waiting for a parking spot to open, when the suspect vehicle allegedly backed out of a stall right into her car.
She claimed that the driver got out and said that he, “Did not have a license and did not own the vehicle.” When she told him that she was going to call police, the man allegedly said he didn’t think the owner of the vehicle had insurance and asked that she not call the cops.
He then allegedly started to leave when the victim snapped a photo of his license plate on her phone.
Police ran the plate and found the registered owner of the SUV. The woman allegedly told officers that her daughter drives the vehicle, but was, “Arrested the night before.” A man named Dakota Jourdan was apparently with her daughter when she was arrested and, “Took custody of the vehicle and her daughter’s phone.”
When the officer got the phone number and called, a man allegedly answered and said it, “Wasn’t Dakota’s phone.” The man identified himself as “James”, and was asked where Dakota was and that he had, “Dropped him off on the west side, but will get Dakota to call him.”
Minutes later, the same man called the officer back and allegedly said that, “He was Dakota.” The man admitted to being in the accident and said the SUV only has minor paint scrapes on the rear bumper. Dakota allegedly told police he tried to give the other driver the insurance information, “But she wouldn’t take it.”
The officer allegedly told Dakota to, “Try again.” Then, Dakota admitted that he was, “Afraid he would get into trouble because he did not have a license.”
Then on May 13, the second criminal complaint states that Green Bay police were called to a department store on E. Mason Street for a retail theft in progress.
The dispatcher was told that a loss prevention employee was watching a woman allegedly, “Remove tags from a sports bra and place it in her purse.” She was seen with a man at the time.
As the man and woman left the store and went into the parking lot, officers intercepted them. The woman was taken by officers to the loss prevention office, where she allegedly admitted to stealing clothes and became emotional.
The man had identified himself as “Damien L. Jordan”. When police ran that name, it came back “Not on file.”
Both the man and woman were taken to the Brown County Jail so that they could begin a photo identification process. The man allegedly had, “Unpaid merchandise” on him at the time. Once at the jail, one of the corporals recognized the man as Dakota J. Jourdan, according to the complaint.
Jourdan is due back in court on June 13 for his final pre-trial hearing. If convicted on all counts, Jourdan faces more than 11 years in prison.
