Masonic lodge theft, Milwaukee County judge denies bond change

MILWAUKEE - A Milwaukee County judge on Thursday denied a suburban Freemason lodge’s request to modify bond conditions for a husband and wife accused of stealing nearly $500,000 from the lodge and spending it on personal use.

In court

What they're saying:

Tyler Kristopeit, 37, and Katie Kristopeit, 38, both of Muskego, were charged this month with conspiracy to commit theft from a business setting and conspiracy to launder money in excess of $100,000. They are currently out of custody on a $10,000 signature bond.

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On Thursday afternoon, the couple was back in Milwaukee County court as an attorney for Tyler Kristopeit’s former masonic lodge wanted a judge to change the bond conditions as a safeguard while both the criminal and civil case against the husband and wife play out. The judge hearing the motion denied it for a lack of standing.

"I’m not quite clear that’s the law," said Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Kristy Yang, referring to the argument by the lodge’s attorney it had standing under the state’s victim rights constitutional amendment "Marsy’s Law."

"Until I’m persuaded with legal support that alleged victim has standing, the court is going to deny that motion."

The attorney who brought the motion, Eric Pangburn, said he intends to file a motion for the trial court judge to reconsider.

What's next:

The Kristopeits are due back in Milwaukee County court next week for a preliminary hearing.

Masonic Lodge theft

The backstory:

Tyler Kristopeit, a member of the George Washington Lodge since 2009, served as the group's secretary-treasurer since 2016, when it operated in Whitefish Bay, according to criminal and civil filings. Court filings said the former realtor was involved with the $2 million sale of the property to Sendik’s, for its grocery store expansion, in October 2025

Prosecutors said, days before the sale closed, Kristopeit opened a bank account in the lodge’s name – but one only he had access to – and wired more than $675,000 from the sale into the account. Of that money, prosecutors said more than $470,000 was transferred out, including to personal accounts for both him and his wife. Court filings said, of the total money wired in after the sale, only $201,000 remains.

Dig deeper:

According to newly filed search warrants, and a civil complaint filed in Waukesha County seeking damages of more than $1 million, Kristopeit submitted annual reports to the lodge showing it had nearly $1 million in investments. But the lodge has not been able to verify the existence of the accounts. The lodge said since Kristopeit took over in 2016, there was little, if any, oversight of his use of money or investments of the lodge.

During a search of the Kristopeit’s home and a storage unit, court filings said documents detailing large amounts of stock sales were found.

On Wednesday, in Waukesha County court, a judge granted a temporary injunction in the civil case, as the George Washington 1776 Lodge #337 F. & A.M. and its governing authority – The Grand Lodge, Free and Accepted Masons of Wisconsin – seek a permanent order preventing the Kristopeits from liquidating assets they have.