A Class C felony theft of property charge and a Class A misdemeanor unauthorized use of a vehicle charge are to be dismissed against Jeremy Richard Robinson, 36, because law enforcement witnesses are unavailable to testify at trial, according to statements made in court on Tuesday. Robinson had demanded a speedy trial.

Former Minot Police Department Detective Krista Cousins had investigated the case and is not available to testify in person at the trial that was scheduled for July 17, Ward County Assistant State’s Attorney Robert Vallie told Judge Doug Mattson on Thursday. Vallie said other police officers could not be located to testify in place of Cousins.

On July 3, Mattson denied a motion that Vallie filed asking for the court to permit Cousins, who is now a special agent with the Department of Homeland Security in New York City, to appear via telephone for the hearing on July 5, according to court documents. Mattson ordered that Cousins would either have to appear in person at the hearing or the hearing would be continued. Vallie said Thursday he filed the motion to dismiss the charges because of the speedy trial and the unavailability of Cousins or other law enforcement to testify.

Mattson asked Vallie when subpoenas were sent out for witnesses in the case.

“My point is, where was the state when you know you have to detain her?” Mattson remarked.

The charges date back to Aug. 29, 2015 and were filed against Robinson, who is being held at the North Dakota State Penitentiary on other charges, on Feb. 14, 2017. The speedy trial request was made on April 20, 2018. Public defender Kyle Craig was assigned to represent Robinson on May 2.

According to the probable cause affidavit filed with the district court in Minot in the case, Robinson had been permitted to borrow a van from the people he was staying with in Minot to travel back and forth to work. The owners told Robinson he could not take the van out of Minot, but Robinson reportedly drove it to Belcourt. When the vehicle was located in Belcourt, law enforcement located a bank bag full of jewelry that had been stolen from the home where Robinson had been staying in Minot, along with two pawn shop receipts and Robinson’s belongings. The homeowner told authorities she had kept the jewelry hidden in a hutch in her home. The pawn shop receipts were for jewelry and electronics, including a drone, two Blue Ray players and an XBox 360. The electronics were also reportedly stolen from people at the residence where Robinson had been staying. Also discovered were checks ripped from a checkbook, belonging to people other than Robinson.

A district court judge in Williston revoked Robinson’s probation in April on theft charges there after finding that he had failed to stay in touch with his probation officer in Indiana and had tested positive there for numerous illegal substances, including morphine, codeine, heroin, dialuded, cocaine, Xanax and methadone in March 2016. The judge sentenced him to 13 months in prison. Robinson is scheduled to be released from the penitentiary on Jan. 1, 2019.

Robinson’s address is given in court records as Partage, Ind.