Fired executive pleads guilty to charges of stealing $300K from Rochester food company

A fired top executive for a Rochester snack foods manufacturer is pleading guilty to making hundreds of thousands of dollars in charges on company credit cards for personal travel and other unauthorized purchases.

Thomas J. Wiechmann, 56, of Austin, Minn., agreed Wednesday to plead to one felony count of theft by swindle in connection with the charges he made from 2013-19 while chief financial officer for Reichel Foods.

The plea deal with prosecutors calls for probation of no more than three years under what is called a stay of imposition. That means the conviction would be reduced to a misdemeanor if he complies with the terms of his sentence and a three-year probation.

Terms include no jail time for Wiechmann and he reserves the right to argue at sentencing for a shorter probationary period. The deal also notes that Wiechmann and the company will try to agree on restitution within six months; otherwise, a contested hearing on the matter might be needed.

Wiechmann entered an Alford plea, which allows him to not admit guilt but acknowledge the prosecution has a high probability of proving its case beyond a reasonable doubt.

He is scheduled to be sentenced Feb. 14 by District Judge Lisa Hayne, who must decide whether to accept the plea agreement.

The original criminal complaint had four counts of theft by swindle and alleged Wiechmann's unauthorized charges totaled more than $600,000. The amended complaint, filed in May 2022, leveled just one theft by swindle count and put the monetary total at more than $300,000. The latter complaint also accused him of redeeming frequent-flyer reward points worth more than $65,000 through use of the company's American Express corporate credit card.

"Hardly a day went by," the criminal complaint filed in September 2021 read, "without unauthorized credit card charges [on] Wiechmann's company credit cards."

Wiechmann was accused of using the cards for hotels, airline tickets, meals, entertainment, a custom alarm service, credit reports and purchases from Fleet Farm, Menards, Lowe's, Sam's Club, Costco and Hy-Vee.

After nearly 24 years with the company, the complaint read, he was fired March 18, 2021, "after it was discovered that he had been abusing his position of trust and violating his fiduciary duty."

The company's former financial controller, Loretta Lynn Taylor, 55, of St. Charles, Minn., also was charged in the scheme at the same time as Wiechmann's revised complaint.

Taylor is accused of using corporate credit cards on a weekly basis for many years until August 2021, read her complaint alleging aiding and abetting theft by swindle.

She allegedly ran up unauthorized charges topping $150,000 for personal expenses such as gasoline, restaurants, travel, lodging, cellphones, auto maintenance. She's also accused of redeeming frequent-flyer reward points worth more than $17,500 through use of the American Express corporate credit card.

Taylor is due back in court Dec. 29. Her attorney, Amy Conners said Thursday that Taylor was a "faithful and loyal employee, and the evidence will prove her innocence."