Story originally printed in the Tomah Journal or online at www.tomahjournal.com

Published - Monday, July 14, 2008

Tomah man faces false imprisonment, battery charges

A Tomah man was charged in Monroe County Circuit Court in late June for allegedly holding a woman hostage for over a week.

Jacob W. Voltz, 19, was charged with false imprisonment and misdemeanor battery for holding a woman confined against her will from June 2 until June 16. The woman had dropped a restraining order on Voltz, her boyfriend, on or about June 2 or 3, according to the criminal complaint. A note left by the woman for her mother later that day said that she was with Voltz and would be back by 8 p.m. She was not seen again for nearly two weeks.

Each time she called her mother, she would speak low or was afraid to make a call, and the calls ended abruptly with someone yelling in the background. On one occasion, she called her mother to pick her up at Schmidty’s Bar, across the street from where she was being held hostage. She later called back and told her mother not to pick her up. Her mother became concerned, because during the few calls or attempted calls from her daughter, someone in the background would yell or scream “what are you doing” or “who are you calling” before the call ended, according to the criminal complaint.

Officers went to the Voltz residence to serve a restraining order and to do a welfare check on June 16. Officers were able to locate the missing woman and took her to safety. She admitted that Voltz did not let her leave the house, and she said that she was not allowed to shower clean herself during that time. She also reported being threatened.

Voltz could face up to six years in prison and a $10,000 fine for false imprisonment, and up to an additional $10,000 and 9 months in jail for the misdemeanor battery.

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