The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office is seeking charges against a 25-year-old Festus man for allegedly stealing a 2003 Chevrolet Silverado pickup that he had taken for a test drive. The alleged theft occurred July 13, but the victim later recovered the pickup, the Sheriff’s Office reported.
The victim said he had taken the pickup to a business in the 4100 block of Jeffco Boulevard in the Arnold area for repairs and while there, met the suspect, who showed interest in buying it. Later, on July 13, the victim arranged to meet the suspect back at the shop and allowed the suspect to take the pickup for two days to test it out. However, the suspect failed to return with the pickup at the agreed-upon time, the report said.
The victim told investigators he had a copy of the suspect’s Social Security card and driver’s license and had been able to contact the suspect by phone until after July 15, when the suspect failed to arrive for their arranged meeting. The victim said he attempted to send a text to the suspect’s phone on July 19, but the phone had been shut off, according to the report.
Later, the victim found the pickup abandoned in Columbia, said Grant Bissell, a Sheriff’s Office spokesman.
“It had been modified somewhat and was not running,” Bissell said.
He said the pickup was valued at $4,000.
As of Sept. 3, the suspect had not been arrested, but the Sheriff’s Office is seeking a charge against him through the Jefferson County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office for first-degree tampering.