Michael Giffin, 36, of Festus and Stephanie Lipe, 33, of Festus have been charged with receiving stolen property in connection with a recent theft from Budget Self Storage, 12521 Hwy. 21, in the De Soto area, authorities report.
At about 3:45 p.m. Aug. 20, the victim, who has both his home and the storage business at the address on Hwy. 21, returned there to find wheels and tires; a paintball gun and accessories; and other items missing from the back of a pickup parked there. In all, the stolen items were valued at $2,218, the probable-cause statement said.
Then, the victim reviewed surveillance footage from security cameras on the property and saw a red Dodge Ram pull up to the business, a man and woman get out of it and look around before stealing the items, the report said.
Deputies reviewed the surveillance footage and recognized the suspects, identifying them as Giffin and Lipe, according to the report.
On Aug. 24, the Jefferson County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office filed one count of receiving stolen property against each of the suspects. The charge is a class C felony punishable by up to seven years in prison.
A $4,000 bond was set for each suspect, and an arrest warrant was issued on Aug. 29 against Giffin and on Aug. 30 against Lipe, court papers show.
As of Thursday (Sept. 8), however, neither one had been taken into custody, the Sheriff’s Office reported.