Bail Jumping Bigamist Avoids Prison Time for Now

SAN ANGELO, TX -- Coty Veach was wearing handcuffs and an orange and white jail uniform when she sat before District Judge Ben Woodward Wednesday morning.  Veach is charged with bigamy, which is the act of marrying one person while being legally married to another.

Veach,41, was arrested Jan. 30, 2016 for bigamy after she filled out a marriage license application with the Tom Green County Clerk on Jan. 6, 2016 then filed for divorce from Wayne Jackson on Jan. 11, five days later. Before the divorce was final, she married the new spouse on Jan. 30, posting a photo of her signed and dated Tom Green County marriage license on Facebook, according to Jackson.

According to court documents, Veach bonded out of jail and skipped town.  She was extradited from Portsmouth, Ohio in Oct. 2017 and again posted bond before talking to her attorney.  Veach was a no show at a court hearing and picked up an additional charge of failure to appear. Both bigamy and failure to appear are third degree felonies punishable by two to ten years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.

Veach was found in July in Florida after she purchased a jeep and the car salesman posted a picture of her in the new vehicle on Facebook.  The post said, “Congratulations and Thank you to Coty and Jason Veach for your purchase of your Jeep…”

Local bail bondsman Ricky Villarreal at Freedom/Libertad Bail Bonds, had a team watching for Facebook posts with her name.  He hired a private investigator to track Veach down in Florida and she was arrested and returned to Tom Green County.

In court Wednesday, Judge Woodward placed Veach on pretrial diversion for two years.  If she completes the two years without violating the terms of the probation, the charges will be dismissed. Veach will have to pay $60 per month in probation fees as well as court costs and attorney fees.  The judge asked Veach if she was employed. She said she would look for employment when she is released from jail.