GRAND RAPIDS, Minn. – The mayor of a small northern Minnesota town has been charged with theft after a former city employee claimed he failed to pay charges tied with a second water line on his property.
The Itasca County Sheriff’s Office spent a year investigating a claim that Keewatin Mayor Michael Labine turned his water valve on and off without paying the the city.
According to the criminal complaint, the investigation began in August of last year when a former deputy clerk and public utilities clerk told the Keewatin Police Chief that Labine was stealing services from the city.
The clerk reported the city charges a $100 fee every time the city turns someone’s water on or off, plus another $10 per month user fee.
Labine is the former city crew supervisor and allegedly knew how to use the tool to turn water on and off. The complaint says Labine owns a double lot and turned on the second valve in the spring when his family came to stay in a camper and turned it off when they left. The charges say it continued for more than 10 years. Labine told investigators that he believes the former city clerk is trying to get back at him because of a relative’s poor performance in a city job.
Labine faces two felony theft charges along with a gross misdemeanor.
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