Joshua Morgan Stroup, 30, of Herculaneum has been charged with allegedly stealing $30,983.89 from Southern Hobby Supply Inc. in St. Louis County, where he worked as a salesman, court records show.
Between Sept. 1, 2014, and May 23, 2016, Stroup allegedly kept payments for himself that Southern Hobby Supply customers made to the business, the probable-cause statement said.
Stroup allegedly confessed to stealing the money, claiming that he needed it to pay household expenses because he had used his paychecks to cover loans that he had taken out for attorney fees stemming from a DWI case, the report said.
On Aug. 22, the St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office filed a class B felony stealing charge against Stroup. The charge is punishable by five to 15 years in prison.
A $25,000 bond has been set in the case.
Stroup previously was convicted of DWI and failure to drive within a single lane, both misdemeanors, tied to an August 2014 incident in Jefferson County. In February 2015, he was ordered to pay a $100 fine and got two years’ probation in that case, court documents indicate.