A Cedar Hill woman and a St. Louis man have been arrested and charged with felonies in connection with recent armed robberies at two Arnold businesses.
Elizabeth Jean Kutzeborn, 41, of Cedar Hill and Tyler Darnell Johnson, 33, of St. Louis each have been charged with first-degree robbery and armed criminal action, both felonies. In addition, Johnson has been charged with another first-degree robbery charge and another armed criminal action charge, court records show.
At 3:08 p.m. Nov. 13, Kutzeborn allegedly entered the front door of the Title Max loan store, 914 Jeffco Blvd., in Arnold and while talking on a cell phone, began speaking with an employee, the probable-cause statement said.
A short time later, Johnson allegedly entered the front door and displayed a semi-automatic handgun, pointed it at the employee and demanded she give him money from the day’s receipts. The employee opened a drawer, and Johnson allegedly took money from it, as well as from two other drawers, for a total of $658, the report said.
Both suspects left the store, got in a white Dodge Challenger and fled the area.
About a week earlier, on Nov. 7, Johnson allegedly entered the Subway restaurant at 657 Jeffco Blvd. in Arnold and displayed a semi-automatic handgun, pointed it at an employee and demanded the clerk open the cash register. Johnson allegedly took $328.38 from the cash register, put the cash in a plastic bag, took the receiver from the shop’s cordless phone and left the restaurant, fleeing in a white Dodge Challenger, according to the report.
Authorities were able to identify the two as suspects and then “pinged” Kutzeborn’s phone, and eventually the two were found and arrested in Carbondale, Ill., the probable-cause statement said.
The Jefferson County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office filed the charges against the two today (Nov. 14).
Johnson reportedly is suspected in six robberies in the St. Louis area, and Kutzeborn is believed to be the driver in each case, according to the report.
As of today, both were in custody in Carbondale awaiting extradition to Jefferson County, Arnold Police reported.
A $100,000 cash-only bond has been set in Jefferson County for both Kutzeborn and Johnson.
Each of the first-degree robbery charges is a class A felony punishable by 10 to 30 years or life in prison. Each of the armed criminal action charges is an unclassified felony that carries a minimum penalty of three years in prison.