Former Columbia parking manager allegedly stole $45,000 over nine months
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
A former parking manager for the City of Columbia allegedly stole roughly $45,000 in coins from the city during a nine-month period, court documents say.
James Faup, 38, of Columbia, is charged in Boone County with stealing more than $25,000. He was arrested on April 2 and was released from jail after posting a $1,500 bond. An initial court appearance is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Thursday, May 28.
The probable cause statement says Faup was allegedly reported to law enforcement by a Walmart employee on March 31 after he was allegedly seen putting a large amount of coins into the Coinstar at the West Broadway store.
Faup had allegedly brought coins in a white bucket and had exchanged a Coinstar receipt for cash, court documents show. He allegedly cashed out $2,071.30 at Walmart that day, the statement says.
Previous reporting says Faup was allegedly wearing a city public works uniform while he was cashing out the coins. Faup allegedly made exchanges while bringing a bucket of coins on March 5, 12, 19 and 31, court documents say.
Police wrote that Faup was seen on camera on March 30 going into the room where the city stores coins and allegedly filled up two Menards buckets with coins. He was also seen on camera allegedly doing the same thing on March 5, 12 and 19.
Someone at the parking division told police, “the protocol for coins was to dump them into a counter that then put them in a safe that would be later collected by Brinks,” court documents say.
Faup allegedly admitted to police that he stole $5,159.95 in March alone and that he took roughly $45,000 from the city over a nine-month period.
Faup had pleaded guilty to misdemeanor stealing in 2013 after he stole money from parking garages ran by the University of Missouri, previous reporting shows. Faup was then employed by the city from Feb. 20, 2013-April 2, 2026.
City Finance Director Matt Lue told ABC 17 News last month that the city is conducting an audit of the parking fund. The city expects it to be complete by the end of May, previous reporting shows.
Check back for updates.
