Tjapkes
By Allison Scarbrough, News Editor
LUDINGTON — A 42-year-old man was found guilty by a jury Thursday, June 4, of two counts of assaulting/resisting/opposing police following a jury trial that began Wednesday, June 3, in Mason County’s 51st Circuit Court.
Nathanial Carl Tjapkes had been told by the owner of Brite N Clean Laundromat “that he was not welcome on their property,” said Mason County Prosecuting Attorney Beth Hand. “The defendant had been entering the premises before closing time and remaining in the business overnight. The defendant was not using the business to do laundry.
“On the evening of Nov. 28, 2025, after seeing on their surveillance equipment that the defendant had again entered the premises, the owner called 911,” said Prosecutor Hand. “Deputies of the Mason County Sheriff’s Office responded to remove the trespassing defendant from the location. Upon contact with Tjapkes, he was informed he was under arrest. Deputies took hold of his arms at which time Tjapkes immediately resisted their attempts to place him in handcuffs. After being cuffed, the defendant yelled at officers and made threats to shoot them and spit on them among other threats and name calling.
“The defendant made other physical movements and jerking motions while he was escorted to the patrol car. While being placed in the patrol car, the defendant followed through on his threat to spit at them.
“At trial, the defendant’s attorney argued the arrest of the defendant was unlawful and that the defendant had a right to resist the arrest,” said Hand. His attorney is Karri Dibble, court records indicate.
“Regardless of the defendant’s alleged belief (as argued through his attorney) that he should not have been arrested, the officers were objectively reasonable in their action of arresting the defendant for trespassing,” said the prosecutor. “If the defendant believed he was entitled to be on the property, the better course of action would have been to go peaceably with the deputies and later contest any charges arising from the incident. The defendant chose to resist the officers’ arrest, which resulted in more serious charges than a misdemeanor trespassing.”
Tjapkes is being prosecuted as a fourth-time habitual offender, court records state. He previously served a prison term of one to 15 years for a 2015 Lake County conviction of failure to register as a sex offender, according to Michigan Department of Corrections records. Tjapkes has prior convictions of trespassing and assaulting/resisting/obstructing police in Wexford County, aggravated stalking and first-degree home invasion in Saginaw County and second-degree criminal sexual conduct in Lake County, according MDOC records.
A conviction of assaulting/resisting/obstructing police is punishable by up to two years in prison.
A sentencing date has not yet been scheduled.
___________________
Please Support Local News and Sports Coverage
Receive daily MCP and OCP news briefings along with email news alerts for $10 a month. Your contribution will help us to continue to provide you with free local news.
The payment can be paid monthly through PayPal: Click this link.
To sign up for an annual subscription, email editor@mediagroup31.com. In the subject line write: Subscription. Please supply your name, email address, mailing address, and phone number (indicate cell phone). We will not share your information with any outside sources.
For more than one email address in a household, the cost is $15 per month per email address.
We can send you an invoice for a yearly payment of $120, which you can conveniently pay online or by check. If you are interested in this method, please email editor@mediagroup31.com and we can sign you up. You can also mail a yearly check for $120 to Media Group 31, PO Box 21, Scottville, MI 49454 (please include your email address).
Payment must be made in advance prior to subscription activation.
We appreciate all our readers regardless of whether they choose to continue to access our service for free or with a monthly financial support.
_____
This story and original photography are copyrighted © 2026, all rights reserved by Media Group 31, LLC, PO Box 21, Scottville, MI 49454. No portion of this story or images may be reproduced in any way, including print or broadcast, without expressed written consent.
As the services of Media Group 31, LLC are news services, the information posted within the sites are archivable for public record and historical posterity. For this reason it is the policy and practice of this company to not delete postings. It is the editor’s discretion to update or edit a story when/if new information becomes available. This may be done by editing the posted story or posting a new “follow-up” story. Media Group 31, LLC or any of its agents have the right to make any changes to this policy. Refer to Use Policy for more information.
.png)