Detroit Lakes man sentenced for incident at golf course

DETROIT LAKES

— Nicholas Lorin Bromeling, 41, of Detroit Lakes, has been sentenced in Becker County District Court for misdemeanor assault. A felony charge of threats of violence was dropped in a plea agreement.

According to court records, on the afternoon of Aug. 9, 2023, two deputies were dispatched to the Detroit Country Club on the report of a disturbance.

A supervisor at the golf course reported that Bromeling stopped at the country club and was upset over a golfer possibly parking in the driveway. Bromeling then left and headed back toward his residence.

A deputy went over there and saw Bromeling in his yard with a golf club, taking full swings as though hitting something toward golfers in the fairway across the street.

The deputy asked Bromeling if he had been at the country club and Bromeling turned and walked into his residence. The deputy went back to the country club and spoke to the supervisor, who was visibly frustrated and told the deputy that Bromeling came flying into the parking lot at a high rate of speed.

He added that Bromeling was swearing and told the supervisor that they were going to go “throw down.” The supervisor told Bromeling he should go home and get some help, as Bromeling’s erratic behavior is well known at the country club.

Bromeling told the supervisor that he was going to burn the supervisor’s house down, leaving him very concerned and worried because he did not know what Bromeling was capable of doing or what his state of mind was.

Another man there confirmed that he observed Bromeling’s behavior and the threat he made. At that time, someone in Bromeling’s neighborhood called dispatch and reported that Bromeling had just hit a golf ball across the street toward a golfer, adding that Bromeling was outside and was screaming and yelling.

The deputy returned to Bromeling’s residence and saw him hurriedly walk toward his garage with a golf club driver, then go inside and close the small walk-in door behind him.

The deputy made contact with a person in the neighborhood, who showed him a Snapchat video of Bromeling hitting golf balls across the road toward the fairway where people were golfing.

Bromeling then came outside and spoke with the deputy. He confirmed that he did speak to the country club supervisor and requested that vehicles not stop, park or watch golf on his property.

Bromeling admitted he was agitated that the supervisor told him he was trespassing and told him to get help. Bromeling stated that because the supervisor said that to him, he could threaten to burn his house down. Bromeling was arrested and taken to jail.

On March 5, District Judge Doug Clark sentenced him on the misdemeanor to 90 days in jail, with 88 days stayed one year and credit for two days served. He was fined $400 plus $150 in court fees.

He was ordered to have no same or similar offenses and placed on unsupervised probation for one year.

Robert Dean Bakken, 40, of rural Waubun, has had two felony assault charges dismissed in Becker County District Court.

He had been charged with felony second-degree assault and felony domestic assault.

According to court records, on March 23, 2022, a White Earth police officer responded to the intersection of Becker County Road 21 and County Road 14 to meet with a man who said that he had seen a woman with blood on her face walking down County Road 21 in a tank top and no shoes. The motorist had stopped, picked up the woman, and called the police.

The officer spoke with the woman and noticed that she had a cut on her right eyebrow and a large red mark on her right upper arm. She said she had been picked up at her residence north of Detroit Lakes by Bakken, the father of her child. She said she told him that she no longer wanted to be with him and he flipped out. Adding, he started to swing a knife around and in her direction. She was able to get out of the vehicle and Bakken continued westbound. She said that the attack occurred in the vehicle on County Road 26 near the Tamarac Refuge, and that he threw the knife out the window shortly after the assault.

On Feb. 29, 2024, the charges against Bakken were dismissed “pursuant to a global plea agreement,” according to court records. A global plea agreement encompasses all charges, sometimes from different agencies.