FAIRMONT — A Winnebago man is facing a felony charge in Martin County.

Dustin Charles Theobald, 36, has been charged with theft, which carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $10,000 fine.

According to the complaint:

On June 21, a Fairmont police officer was dispatched on a theft report involving a stolen wedding ring. The officer met with a woman at her residence, who showed him a photograph of a wedding ring from a previous mariage that she purchased in 1977 for about $1,200.

The woman said “Plum’s Jewelry” was engraved inside the ring.

The woman also said a five diamond anniversary band was purchased and attached to the ring in 2002, at a cost of about $5,000. The anniversary band was purchased at Sovell Jewelry.

The woman provided a document of an appraisal on the ring set, which showed a value of $4,500.

The woman explained she stored the ring in a locked safe at her residence, and indicated that two keys came with the safe but one had been missing for some time. The woman said the missing key was attached to a key fob for her vehicle, and that she last remembered seeing her ring set in the safe around November 2017.

The woman said she suspected Theobald of the theft as he was living with her a short time around November 2017. She said she called Theobald but he denied taking the ring set.

The woman looked at a couple of pawn shops and located her ring at Pawn America in Mankato, though it was missing the five diamond anniversary band.

On June 22, the police officer contacted Pawn America and spoke with the store manager who indicated he was aware of the situation involving the ring and the ring was in his safe. The manager was unsure about the missing anniversary band, but said he would provide the sales receipt. The officer received an email listing the sale of a wedding ring on Jan. 19, 2018, to a witness in Easton.

On June 23, the officer spoke with the witness, who explained she purchased a five stud anniversary band from Pawn America in the fall of 2017. She indicated the band was soldered to the wedding ring, and that store employees removed the band and sold it to her for about $350. She said she had the band appraised for $2,500.

On June 26, the officer received an email from Pawn America with a sales receipt from the original seller. The receipt indicated the ring was pawned on Sept. 10, 2017, by Theobald.

Police tried several times to arrange an interview with Theobald, but he would not respond or show up.