Wisconsin woman accused of writing bad check to pay for items at Farm and Fleet in Sycamore

SYCAMORE – A Wisconsin woman is facing charges after allegedly attempting to pay for more than $200 worth of items at Farm and Fleet in Sycamore with a bad check, according to DeKalb County prosecutors.

Cheryl L. Geise, 51, of Beloit, Wisconsin, was arrested and charged with deceptive practices, a Class 4 felony, out of DeKalb County after facing similar charges out of McHenry County. If convicted of the DeKalb County charge, Geise could face up to three years in prison.

According to DeKalb County court documents, Geise allegedly intentionally defrauded Farm and Fleet, 1300 DeKalb Ave. in Sycamore, on Nov. 23, 2019, by attempting to buy household goods with a Wells Fargo Bank check for $238.51.

“Knowing said check would not be paid by the depository,” according to court documents.

Prosecutors requested Geise’s bond to be set at $10,000, with 10% to post, according to court records.

Geise was present in open court Thursday via Zoom from DeKalb County Jail. She told the court she could not post $1,000 for her release from jail. Twenty-third Circuit Court Judge Marcy Buick appointed Public Defender Tom McCulloch to represent her.

Geise told McCulloch she recently was in the McHenry County jail for three months.

Adam Christensen, pre-trial officer in the DeKalb County Courthouse, said Geise was held at the McHenry County Jail until the $30 a day credit decreased to zero and, once her balance reached zero, she was released and taken into custody in the DeKalb County Jail.

“So she still has a pending case in McHenry [County] and is out on bond for that case right now,” Christensen said.

Buick set a $10,000 recognizance bond for Geise, meaning she could get out of DeKalb County Jail on just her signature. Buick also ordered Geise to have no contact with the corporation and to only leave Illinois to live in Wisconsin as a condition of her bond.

Geise is due back in DeKalb County court at 9 a.m. March 21 via Zoom in front of DeKalb County Judge Philip Montgomery. Geise is due back in McHenry County court before then, on Feb. 22.