On Monday, Sept. 7, 2026, at approximately 3:11 p.m., the Red Oak Police Department arrested Jesse Ray Nelson, 40, of Red Oak.
All criminal charges are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty in the court of law.
On Monday, Sept. 7, officers of the Red Oak Police Department received a report of a stolen fuel tank from a boat in Red Oak that occurred the previous night. After a short investigation, officers were able to identify the offender. Officers then wrote a search warrant for 507½ East Washington Avenue in Red Oak.
At the conclusion of the search, officers of the Red Oak Police Department arrested Nelson for theft in the fifth degree and criminal mischief in the fifth degree for damage or defacing the fuel tank. The report lists the charges as one count of theft in the fifth degree, a simple misdemeanor under Iowa Code 714.2(5), and one count of criminal mischief in the fifth degree, a simple misdemeanor under Iowa Code 716.6(2).
Nelson was transported to the Montgomery County Jail without incident and was being held on $600 bond at the time this information was released.
