The Jefferson County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office has charged two St. Louis residents for allegedly breaking into and stealing items from a home in the 1900 block of Old Buck Creek Road west of Festus, court records show.
On April 9, Cody Blake Kamper, 34, and Edwina Sekic, 29, were charged with first-degree burglary, a class B felony punishable by five to 15 years in prison, according to court documents.
The two were being held without bond, as of April 11, at the Jefferson County Jail in Hillsboro, court records said.
According to the case’s probable-cause statement, deputies were called to the home at about 7:10 a.m. April 9 for a burglary in progress. The victim had come home while Kamper and Sekic were in the house, and the two fled to a wooded area. A deputy found Kamper and Sekic in the wooded area a short time after arriving at the home, the report said.
The home was in disarray, and rubber gloves were found in a bedroom. Footprints also were found leading from the house to the wooded area, and one of the prints matched Sekic’s shoes, according to the report.
Investigators found items stolen from the home in a Chevrolet Silverado that Kamper and Sekic drove to the house, the report said.
Kamper allegedly told investigators that he and Sekic went to the home because they were told nobody is typically in the house and there were tools, guns and a vehicle that they could steal. He also told investigators he had found a gun in the home and had loaded it “for protection” in case the resident came home, according to the report.
Kamper said the two talked about how much they could sell the stolen items for while inside the home, the report said.
Sekic also allegedly admitted to going to the home to steal items. She told investigators where the gun was that Kamper stole, and deputies found the gun outside the home, according to the report.
Jefferson County assistant prosecuting attorney Steven Jerrell is prosecuting the case.