Ripp sentenced to 9 months for stealing $136,000 from Lakeland business

A 50-year-old Baraboo man convicted of stealing over $100,000 from his former employer, a Lakeland area business, was sentenced last week to 9 months in jail.

Brian Ripp, formerly of Minocqua, was also sentenced to 5 years probation and was ordered to pay $136,991.20 in restitution and costs.

On May 22, Ripp entered no contest pleas to two counts of theft in a business setting ($10,000-$100,000).

According to the criminal complaint, an investigation began in early 2023 after representatives of Lakeland Rental Management discovered irregularities concerning the company’s security deposit trust account.

The owner of the company told investigators she hired Ripp in 2020 and his duties included basic property management, including showing vacant units to prospective tenants, filling out leases, collecting rent and security deposits. 

An audit of the rental management software used by the company showed over 100 entries had been entered and then deleted, the complaint said.

The owner of the company alleged that Ripp would enter the information in the system when a tenant would pay a pet fee or prorated rent, give the tenant a receipt, delete the entry from the software and keep the money.

In one instance, the complaint alleged Ripp took $20,000 that was anonymously donated to the residents of the Coach House Apartments following a fire in late January 2023.

According to the complaint, Ripp “talked (the anonymous person) into a large amount of money, stating many people needed help.” Ripp asked the person to make the check out to his own personal account and advised he would distribute the funds to the tenants that he knew were in need of help. There’s no record any of the funds were ever applied to any of the tenants’ accounts, according to the complaint.

The complaint further alleged that Ripp contacted the owner of the company and admitted to taking money. He advised that he wanted to pay the money back and would show the owner what he did so the company’s books could be corrected, the complaint said.

Ripp was fired after the irregularities were discovered.

The defense recommended a three-month jail sentence, noting that Ripp stole the money as the result of a gambling addiction for which he has since sought treatment.

Bloom adopted Oneida County district attorney Jillian Pfeifer’s sentencing recommendation of 9 months in jail on Count 1 and an imposed and stayed sentence of 7,5 years in the state prison system on Count. 2. That sentence is comprised of 2.5 years initial confinement followed by five years extended supervision.

Defendants can be ordered to serve an imposed and stayed sentence if they violate probation.

Ripp will receive credit for 4 days already served.