Suspect identified in thefts from vehicles in Cole County

UPDATE (7/11):Authorities have identified the older of two people arrested in Henley over the weekend on suspicion of stealing from cars throughout the county.

Prosecutors have charged Christopher Edwards, 21, with ten counts of receiving stolen property after deputies reported finding him with a number of stolen guns.

On July 3, a state trooper stopped a speeding vehicle in Miller County, and found a gun stolen from Jefferson City with the driver. The gun had been stolen in June, and the driver admitted to buying that gun and another one he believed to be stolen from Edwards.

On July 9, deputies searched a home on Opel Lane, where nine stolen guns were found. Five had been stolen from Cole County, one was stolen in Jefferson City, and three were stolen in Holts Summit. Court documents show Edwards allegedly stole the guns, as well as some electronics, from vehicles those locations.

Edwards’ bond was set at $100,000; on Monday, a judge refused to lower that bond.

ORIGINAL (7/6): The Cole County Sheriff’s Office says since July 1, it has received reports of 17 incidents where someone stole items from inside vehicles.

The thefts happened late at night or early in the morning, and nearly all the vehicles were unlocked at the time. The reports came from residents living on Horseshoe Road, Greenbrier Drive and Rainbow Road, according to Sheriff Greg White.

“My neighbor’s car alarm went off about 3:30 maybe 4:00 in the morning, woke me up,” Russell Connally, who lives on Horseshoe Road, said. “The next morning about 5:30 I come out, got ready for work came outside found a pack of cigarettes in the driveway set it off to the side, didn’t think anything of it.”

When Connally heard of the car break-ins in his neighborhood, he said he and his wife called the Cole County Sheriff’s Office and handed over the cigarette pack in hopes deputies could pull fingerprints.

Sheriff White said this is a good reminder people should always lock their vehicles, and avoid leaving valuable items inside as much as possible.

Sheriff White told ABC 17 News an increase in theft from cars is a trend around summer time every year.

But more was stolen from Cole County vehicles this April in more than four years.

In April, more than $31,000 worth of property was stolen in 39 thefts from Cole County vehicles according to the Missouri State Highway Patrol Unified Crime Report.

That was the highest dollar amount of property stolen from vehicles in the county since November 2011.

In May, the most recent month on the UCR reports, nearly $19,000 worth of property was stolen.

Cole County resident Ann Colter said she takes steps to make sure she does not become a target.

“We always put our car in the garage during the daytime and at night,” Colter said. “If we go out, we don’t leave the car out.”

If you have information on any of these thefts, or see someone breaking into or stealing from a vehicle, you are asked to call the sheriff’s office at (573) 634-9160.