Joshua P. Milfelt, 30, of Festus, a prior offender, has been sentenced to 12 years in prison following charges for felonious restraint and felony burglary and stealing, court papers indicate.
On March 8, 2015, Milfelt and a male accomplice burglarized a Pevely apartment, stealing electronics and other items altogether valued at $1,285, before driving a car they had previously stolen to a Festus home they broke into and then hid out inside during a six-hour standoff with police, the probable-cause statements in the case say.
In addition, while Milfelt was hiding in the home, he prevented a woman he knew and who lived there from leaving, threatening to harm her if she allowed law enforcement officers inside. Later, the victim told officers that during those threats, Milfelt grabbed her neck, hurting her. The victim also said Milfelt threatened that if he were arrested, he would return to the home later and burn it down with the woman inside, the report said.
After officers from multiple law enforcement agencies surrounded the home and negotiated with Milfelt and his accomplice, they eventually surrendered. When officers searched the car the men had driven there, they found electronics and other items stolen from the Pevely apartment. Officers also found Xanax and drug paraphernalia in it, according to the report.
Milfelt pleaded guilty to felonious restraint, first-degree burglary, second-degree burglary, stealing and stealing a motor vehicle, all felonies. On Aug. 17, Jefferson County Div. 1 Circuit Judge Robert G. Wilkins sentenced him to five 12-year prison terms, one for each of the charges. However, they are to be served concurrently, or at the same time. In addition, Milfelt may be released early if he successfully completes a one-year treatment program, court documents show.
Jefferson County assistant prosecuting attorney Shannon G. O’Neal handled the case.
No information about charges against Milfelt’s accomplice could be found.
Milfelt previously was convicted of physically taking property from another, a felony tied to a December 2004 incident in Ste. Genevieve County, to felony possession of a controlled substance stemming from an August 2006 incident in St. Louis and to felony damage to jail property connected to a November 2009 incident in St. Louis County, according to court records.
He currently is facing three felony drug charges stemming from a February 2014 incident in St. Louis County, and that case is pending, court papers show.