Charles City man faces 34 counts of forgery, other charges

By Bob Steenson, bsteenson@charlescitypress.com

A Charles City man has pleaded not guilty and a trial date set on 34 counts of felony forgery, three counts of burglary and — the most serious charges — two counts of ongoing criminal activity.

Corey Patrick Byers, age 39, was first charged on July 29 with three counts of forgery for allegedly writing checks on other persons’ accounts in May and July.

According to records in Floyd County District Court, on Sept. 24 an order was filed giving notice that a plea agreement had been reached and a hearing date was set for Nov. 5 and later rescheduled for Nov. 19.

On Oct. 14, however, Byers was charged with 10 more counts of forgery and one count of ongoing criminal activity, and a warrant was issued on Oct. 18 for his arrest for violating the terms of his pretrial release. He was arrested that day.

On Oct. 25, the Floyd County Attorney’s Office filed 21 counts of forgery, three counts of burglary in the third degree for allegedly burglarizing unoccupied vehicles, and another count of ongoing criminal conduct.

On Oct. 31, the County Attorney’s Office filed a motion to consolidate the charges in the cases that had been filed on July 29, Oct. 14 and Oct. 25 into one case “in the interest of justice and judicial economy.”

The attorney’s office also asked the court to dismiss two other cases because charges in those cases had been included in the filing Oct. 25.

The judge agreed to consolidate the cases and dismiss those requested.

Byers is accused of stealing a total of $2,019.38 in the 34 counts of forgery.

That breaks down to $118.84 for two instances at Casey’s, $414.86 for 10 instances at Kwik Star, $174.62 for five instances at Hy-Vee, $142.81 for one check at Triumph Surplus, $90.45 for one check at Pizza Hut, and a total of $1,077.80 for 15 checks allegedly forged at Fareway.

Byers is currently being held in the Floyd County Jail. He has demanded his right to a speedy trial, and the trial date has been set for Dec. 10 in Floyd County District Court.

Byers filed a plea of not guilty to the latest charges in a written arraignment filed Tuesday.

Each instance of forgery is charged as a Class D felony. The three charges of third-degree burglary are each aggravated misdemeanors.

Ongoing criminal conduct is a Class B felony, punishable upon conviction by up to 25 years in prison on each charge.