SIOUX CITY, Iowa (Iowa Media Wire) — A Sioux City woman has pleaded guilty as part of a plea agreement for her role in a scheme to obtain forgeries of car titles out of Iowa.
On April 30, Rhonda Vermilyea, 34, pleaded guilty to first-degree fraudulent practice, perjury, and first-degree theft in two cases. She had originally been charged with 13 counts of first-degree fraudulent practice, 12 counts of perjury, 15 counts of forgery, and one count of first-degree theft.
As part of the agreement, Vermilyea has agreed to a sentence of a suspended 25 consecutive years in prison. She must also pay $31,314.14 in restitution. She also agreed to serve five years of probation for each of the three counts.
The official sentencing for Vermilyea is set for June 10.
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Arresting court documents stated Vermilyea would forge the owner’s signature of the Sioux City towing company she worked for on abandoned vehicle affidavits from mid-2020 to January 2023. She would then allegedly supply those forged documents to Christopher Abelson so that he could obtain a fraudulent Iowa Dealer’s Title, allowing him to sell them. The two were charged in December 2023.
Abelson has pleaded guilty and been sentenced as well. On June 7, 2024, he pleaded guilty to conspiracy, first-degree fraudulent practice and perjury as part of a plea agreement. He faced a count of conspiracy, 12 counts of first-degree fraudulent practice, and 12 counts of perjury. His guilty pleas were accepted on July 1, 2024.
On November 1, 2024, Abelson was sentenced to no more than 10 years in prison and $12,050 in fines. The prison time and $2,050 in fines were suspended. Abelson was also sentenced to four years of probation.