Trucker accused of refusing to pay $20K tow bill could be sentenced to 9 years in prison

A Colorado-based trucker is facing multiple felony charges related to a towing incident in that occurred in Wisconsin late last year.

Authorities in Monroe County, Wisconsin, have charged 35 year old trucker Yevgeniy Bloshenko with retail theft, felony damage to property, and trespassing.

The charges stem from an incident that began on November 17, 2019 in Monroe County, Wisconsin.

Bloshenko told police that he was eastbound on I-94 at mile marker 145 when he was cut off by another vehicle and ran off the road into a swampy area.

C.L. Chase Towing was called in to help recover Bloshenko’s truck.

Carl and Elsje Chase from the towing company said that they would have to come back the next day because it would take 3 heavy wreckers, a service truck, and 2 extra personnel to remove the semi truck from the ditch.

Bloshenko spent the night of November 17 in a hotel while he waited for the tow.

On November 18, C.L. Chase Towing towed the truck back to their company shop and parked it on the lot next to a heavy flatbed wrecker.

Bloshenko was presented with a tow bill for $20,400.00, which he disagreed with, saying that it was too much.

Bloshenko said that he contacted his boss at North Carolina-based Hickorytranz, LLC and explained that C.L. Chase wanted a Comcheck to pay the tow bill. Bloshenko’s boss reportedly offered to send wire transfer instead but C.L. Chase refused this method of payment because they were worried that the transfer would be reversed.

During the overnight hours of November 18-19, Bloshenko took his truck from the C.L. Chase lot.

On the morning of November 19, Elsje Chase called police and told them that someone had brought a heavy wrecker to their lot and removed Bloshenko’s truck overnight — and that in the process, that person had damaged a Chevy Silverado pickup, a Chevy Malibu, a dump trailer, and the lawn, driveway, and trees on the property.

Elsje Chase also told police that no one had paid the tow bill for Bloshenko’s truck.

The total cost of the tow bill plus damages was estimated at $30,950.

When Bloshenko later spoke with police, he admitted to taking the truck off the C.L. Chase lot, but said that he did not use a heavy wrecker to remove it and that he did not strike any other vehicles or trees.

Bloshenko also told police that the wire transfer was available to C.L. Chase but that they’d never accepted it.

C.L. Chase says that they still haven’t been paid for the tow job.

Bloshenko is scheduled to appear in court on October 5, 2020.

If he is convicted, he could face up to 9 years, 6 months in prison and fines of up to $20,000.