Arnold Police recently got a report about a date gone terribly wrong.
A 54-year-old Bonne Terre woman told Arnold Police she met a 38-year-old St. Louis man through Facebook and the two went to an Arnold restaurant, where he abandoned her and allegedly stole her car, police reported.
Arnold Police were called to the Syberg’s restaurant, 249 Arnold Crossroads Center, at 9:44 p.m. March 14, after the woman’s 2018 Chevrolet Camaro reportedly was stolen. The car, which was valued at $23,000, was recovered a short time later, the report said.
The woman told police she had met the man for their date at Mercy Hospital South in south St. Louis County and the two drove from there to the Arnold restaurant. She said the man asked to drive her car, a Camaro, to the restaurant because he had never driven one before, and she agreed, according to the report.
While at the restaurant, the man reportedly told the woman he was going to use the restroom. However, after he didn’t return to the table, the woman asked an employee to check the restroom, and then she learned the man had left the restaurant, allegedly driving away in her car, the report said.
While an officer was interviewing the woman, another officer drove to Mercy South Hospital and found the Camaro in the parking lot with the keys inside. The car was returned to the woman, according to the report.
Officers were able to use Facebook to identify the St. Louis man and track him to his home in Affton. They arrested him at about 9 p.m. March 15 at his home, the report.
The man was taken to the Arnold Police Station, where he was booked and released pending application for warrants. Arnold Police will seek charges against the man through the Jefferson County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office for stealing a motor vehicle, as well as stealing under $750 because the man reportedly didn’t pay his restaurant bill before leaving Syberg’s, Capt. Rich Shular said.