A Jefferson County judge sentenced a St. Louis man to seven years in prison for violating the terms of his probation. Christopher Jay Niswonger, 31, had previously pleaded guilty to felony charges following arrests in House Springs and unincorporated Jefferson County, court records said.
Jefferson County Div. 1 Circuit Judge Joseph Rathert on Oct. 8 revoked Niswonger’s probation and executed sentences of seven years for possession of a controlled substance, seven years for drug trafficking and five years for receiving stolen property, according to court documents. The sentences will run concurrently or at the same time for a total of seven years.
Niswonger pleaded guilty to the charges in June 2022, but after undergoing a treatment program, he had been placed on five years’ probation in October 2022, court records said.
Jefferson County assistant prosecuting attorney Lindsay Whalen prosecuted the case.
Niswonger was first arrested in September 2019 following a single-vehicle accident near the intersection of Main Drive and Indian Springs Road in House Springs. When a Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office deputy searched the vehicle, he found methamphetamine, marijuana, a smoking pipe and digital scale, the case’s probable-cause statement said.
Niswonger was arrested again in April 2020 when a deputy found a 2019 Taizhou Zhongeng moped under a tarp in a recovered stolen vehicle. The deputy discovered the moped had been reported stolen in St. Louis County, the case’s probable-cause statement said.
Niswonger said he had purchased the moped through Facebook marketplace, but he could not provide a title or bill of sale, the report said.
Niswonger also was arrested in September 2020 when a Sheriff’s Office deputy searched a home because of suspected narcotics distribution. Deputies found multiple digital scales with residue and numerous bags that contained substances that tested positive for methamphetamine, the case’s probable-cause statement said.