Missouri State Highway Patrol

Supplemental Report
Incident #180134419

SUPPLEMENT #21 - SUMMARY DETAILS OF INVESTIGATION

1. The victim in this investigation is:

City of Desoto

2. The suspect in this investigation is:

, date of birth May 4, 1962, address: , 63020.

3. The alleged violation of law is:

Stealing RsMO: 570.030 - 035Y20172399.0

4. A chronological synopsis of events is as follows:

a. On Tuesday, March 5, 2018, Missouri State Highway Patrol Division of Drug and Crime
Trooper T. S. Craig, badge 287, was assigned a special investigation in Desoto, Missouri
(Jefferson County). The request came from Jefferson County Prosecuting Attorney Forrest K.
Wegge. Wegge requested the Missouri State Highway Patrol, Division of Drug and Crime
Control investigate allegations of mishandling money from the scrap sales of water meters by
employees from the City of Desoto Public Works Department.

b. On Tuesday, March 6, 2018, at approximately 0930 hours, Trooper T. S. Craig conducted an

interview with Desoto City Council members, , and .
and reported employees of the Desoto City Public Works Department sold
several loads of brass water meters that had been replaced with upgraded versions to M W
Recycling in Festus, Missouri, and had not accounted for the money they received for the sales.
stated he was made aware that one of the city works employees who was hauling the
water meters to MW Recycling, told the Public Works Director, , he did not think
it was right for the city work employees to be putting the checks into their names.
stated he was made aware that, , directed Assistance Public Works Director,
, to haul the rest of the loads to MW Recycling. stated he brought this information
to the attention of Councilman , and then to , who was the Desoto City
Manager at the time. stated he was apprehensive about bringing up the issue to the city
council at that time, because he felt the would ignore the matter due to local politics.
stated he felt the best opportunity for resolution would come after the results of the
upcoming election. stated after he did contact about the matter nothing happened.

Desoto City Clerk stated recently her office received two (2) checks from city
employees for two (2) loads of water meters that Public Works employees had taken to M W
Recycling. Prior to these two (2) checks, stated her office had not received any other
checks. provided me with copies of these checks. The first check dated April 20, 2016,
from M W Recycling ticket number ZFORUV, was for the sale of 800 pounds of yellow brass, in
the amount of $1,016.00. The check was made payable to . The second check
dated March 1, 2018, from M W Recycling ticket number TJVJCW, was for the sale of 1840
pounds of yellow brass, in the amount of $1,196.00.

c. On Tuesday, March 6, 2018, Missouri State Highway Patrol, Division of Drug and Crime
Control Corporal Dustin. B. Reed, badge 988, obtained sale tickets from M W Recycling, in
Festus, Missouri, for the sales of water meters by the City of Desoto Public Works employees.
Additionally, Corporal Reed compiled the receipts and listed them on an Excel spreadsheet.

d. On Friday, March 9, 2018, Trooper Craig met with Jefferson County, Missouri, Prosecuting
Attorney Michael Ravetta, and applied for investigative subpoenas for the bank records of the
Desoto Public Works Employees. The subpoenas were issued and were received on Tuesday,
March 13, 2018. The subpoenas were served to the respective banks on the same date received.

e. On Thursday, March 15, 2018, at 0930 hours, Trooper Craig obtained additional documents
from M W Recycling, located at 107 North 9th Street, Festus, Missouri, related to the scrap sales
made by the City of Desoto Public Works Department.

On Tuesday, March 20, 2018, Trooper Craig met with Desoto City Clerk , and
Desoto City Finance Director , who r
with the transactions from M W Recycling, from January 1, 2016, through December 31.
advised the transactions indicated by M W Recycling ticket numbers ZFORUV, TJPRZD,
TJPTYF, TJPUQJ, TJPVPK, TJPYHG, ZGRNIQ, TJVJCW, in the were accounted for in the

ZFAVZK, ZFPQRX, ZFULCP, TINNXZ, ZFYKGE, ZFYTFD, TIQHDA, TIQIZX, TIQIJK,

TIQKJI, TJULLX, with checks or cash payments to were unaccounted for in the

f. On Friday, March 23, 2018, at approximately 0857 hours, Trooper Craig conducted an
interview with the City of Desoto Assistant Public Works Director, .
stated since he has worked for the City of Desoto the Public Works Department had sold scrap

direction of the Public Works Director . stated he and other employees

would take a load of scrap metal to M W Recycling in Festus, take the money received, and he or
would put the money in a metal can that kept in his office. stated he
would direct the employees at M W Recycling to issue the check in his name, he would then

did not know if the other employees had the checks issued to their name, if they had it issued to
the City of Desoto, or if they received cash. stated would authorize the
department to use money from the scrap sales to purchase food items for a city employee dinner,
or for items needed for the Public Works Department. denied using the money for
personal reasons. stated requested permission from former City Manager
before spending any money from the scrap sales, but he was not witness to and
conversations.
 g. On Friday, March 23, 2018, at approximately 0901 hours, Corporal Reed conducted an
interview with City of Desoto Public Works employee . stated he was
directed by to take a load of scrap water meters to M W Recycling and sell them for
scrap and get cash for the transaction. stated told him to try and get cash, so they
could use the money to buy items for a barbecue. stated he attempted to get cash, but the
employees at M W Recycling told him they could not give him cash since the amount was over
$500.00. stated he contacted who told him to have the check issued in name.
stated he had M W Recycling issue the check in his name and he took the check to the

later he was contacted by who told him the check had been recalled and it was reissued

Recycling on approximately four or five times and he felt uncomfortable getting cash or having a
check issued to his name.

h. On Friday, March 23, 2018, at approximately 0934 hours, Missouri State Highway Patrol,
Division of Drug and Crime Control Sergeant Perry L. Smith, badge 993, conducted an interview
with City of Desoto Public Works Director

in the City of Desoto. stated the money was used to purchase food for City employee
dinners and for items needed by the Public Works Department. stated the money was
kept in a metal can in his office and he and were the only two who had access to it.
further explained he or would direct Public Works employees to haul a load of
scrap to M W Recycling and sell it. The employees would then take the check they received
from the sale, cash it, and bring the money to him or . stated the money was kept
in the metal can, along with the purchase receipts for anything that was bought using the money.
stated he obtained permission from former City Manager to use the money
from the scrap sales for use by the Public Works Department. stated he contacted
for permission before any purchases were made using the funds. provided the metal
can, which contained purchase receipts, scrap sale tickets, and $2,060.27. stated he did
not use any of the funds for personal use, and the purchase receipts in the metal can were for the
purchases made from money obtained from the scrap metal sales.

i. On Friday, March 23, 2018, at approximately 0947 hours, Missouri State Highway Patrol,
Division of Drug and Crime Control Corporal B. M. Seymore, badge 641, interviewed Desoto
City Public Works employee . stated he had been directed to take
several loads of scrap metal to M W Recycling over the years and he has always received a
check for selling the scrap. stated he always took the check to .

j. On Friday, March 23, 2018, at approximately 1008 hours, Corporal Reed conducted an
interview with City of Desoto Public Works employee . stated he has
hauled loads of scrap and sold it to Shapiro Brother (now MW Recycling) and brought the
money back t
load of scrap. stated a former employee, , had hauled a load of scrap and
he did not
get cash. also stated had hauled a load of scrap and refused to get cash
and he refused to cash the check, which had been issued to the City of Desoto.
 k. On Friday, March 23, 2018, at approximately 1039 hours, Corporal Seymore interviewed
, Desoto City Public Works employee. stated in November of 2015 or
2016, he took 2 or 3 loads of scrap metal to M W Recycling, which at that time was called
Shapiro Brothers. stated he was directed by to take the loads and to get cash or have
the check issued to or his name. stated he had the checks issued to the City of
Desoto.

l. On Friday, March 23, 2018, at approximately 1107 hours, Corporal Seymore interviewed
Desoto City Public Works employee . stated he just worked in the
shop and he had never hauled any loads of scrap. stated he had scrapped batteries in
the past. On the first occasion he gave the money to , and on the second occasion he put

money and turned it over to the City of Desoto Finance Manager, .

m. On Friday, March 23, 2018, at approximately 1144 hours, Sergeant Smith conducted an
interview with former Desoto City Manager . stated , an
employee at for the City of Desoto Public Works Department, advised him that had
metal. stated
expressed concerns about how the money was being handled. stated he contacted

metal. stated told him he used the money to purchase food for City employee
dinners and for various items needed for the Public Works Department. stated he was

dollars. stated he contacted , from Schowalter and Jabouri, the

agency that conducts the independent audit for the City of Desoto. stated after speaking
with about it, she suggested the funds be accounted for and turned into the finance
manager and be handled through the City. stated told him he would turn the
money over to , the City of Desoto Finance Manager. stated he felt the
matter was closed after that, and he did not hear any more about it.

n. On Thursday, March 29, 2018, at approximately 0900 hours, Trooper Craig met with Chief
Edwards at the Desoto Police Department to pick up the additional documents that were brought
to him by . Chief Edwards provided a manila envelope that was sealed with a white
sticker. The sticker was signed and dated by , and City of Desoto Assistant Public
Works Director . The sticker was dated March 28, 2018, at 1143 hours. Chief
Edwards advised the envelope was brought to him by and it had already been signed and
sealed by . Trooper Craig reviewed the contents of the envelope and found several
receipts from various retailers and several sale tickets from Shapiro Brothers scrap yard.
Shapiro Brothers scrap yard was bought and now operated by M W Recycling. Trooper Craig
scheduled the purchase receipts and scrap sale tickets onto an excel spreadsheet to be reviewed at
a later time, along with the purchase receipts and scrap sale tickets that were obtained on Friday,
March 23, 2018, during the interviews with and .

o. On Monday, April 9, 2018, Trooper Craig reviewed the scrap sale tickets and purchase
receipts provided during the interview of City of Desoto Public Works Director .
The scrap metal tickets obtained from were dated from November 10, 2010, through
March 1, 2018. The purchase receipts obtained from were dated from November 16,
2006, through August 16, 2017. The scrap metal ticket sales totaled $13,758.40. The purchase
receipts totaled $7,887.30. During the interview, produced $2060.27 in cash from the
metal can in his office. The difference from the total of the scrap metal sales, after applying the
purchase receipts, and the cash totaled $3,810.83; which is unaccounted for.

p. On Tuesday, April 10, 2018, at approximately 0919 hours, Trooper Craig conducted an
interview with Desoto City Clerk . stated she was unaware of the Public Works
was
brought to her attention by City Council Members and , around
the time when the investigation was requested. stated prior to her being made aware of the
ks Director

metal was on November 1, 2017. stated sent a memo to her, the City Council,
and the Mayor, requesting to sell some scrap metal and use the money from the sale to purchase
work pants for employees of the Public Works Department. provided me with a copy of
the memo form requesting to sell scrap metal and use the money to purchase work pants
for the Public Works employees.

q. On Tuesday, April 10, 2018, at approximately 0928 hours, Trooper Craig conducted a
telephone interview with , from the accounting firm Schowalter and Jabouri.
stated during the audit her office conducted for the City of Desoto in January of 2017,
she had a conversation with either , the former Desoto City Manager, or
, the City of Desoto Finance Manager,
Public Works Director . stated or expressed concerns about
an for
nominal
amount scope
of their audit. stated she did not recall any specific recommendation she made about the
from the

r. On Tuesday, April 10, 2018, at approximately 0937 hours, Trooper Craig conducted an
interview with the City of Desoto Finance Manager . stated she was
aware she
heard of it being an issue was when City Council Member brought it to her attention
in November or December of 2017. stated told her that employees were directed
by to sell the scrap metal and get cash and bring it to him. stated the only
request she received for payment from scrap metal sales was when submitted a memo
requesting to sell some scrap metal and use the money from the sale to purchase work pants for
employees of the Public Works Department.

s. On Tuesday, April 10, 2018, at approximately 0955 hours, Trooper Craig conducted a
follow- up interview with the City of Desoto Public Works Director . Trooper
Craig reviewed the scrap sale tickets and purchase receipts with from the Excel
spreadsheet that was created. Trooper Craig advised that the scrap metal ticket sales he
provided totaled $13,758.40. The purchase receipts totaled $7,887.30, and the cash he produced
from the metal can totaled $2060.27. Trooper Craig advised there is $3,810.83,
unaccounted for, after totaling the scrap metal sales and then deducting the purchase receipts,
and the cash. stated he searched his office and he could not locate any other purchase
receipts. stated he could not account for the missing $3,810.83.

t. On Tuesday, April 17, 2018, at approximately 1133 hours, Trooper Craig conducted an
interview with . was a former Desoto City Public Works Employee.
stated from 2015 to 2016, he hauled approximately 3 to 4 loads of scrap metal and
water meters to Shapiro Brothers scrap yard (now M W Recycling). stated each load
was over $750.00. stated he was instructed by both Desoto City Public Works
Director , and Assistant Public Works Director , to get the check
from Shapiro Brothers issued to his name, to cash that check, and take the money to or
was
being his name,
but he had heard other employees we
stated he would take the checks that were issued in his name and take them to the
bank and cash them. stated he would have the bank teller put the cash and the scrap
sale ticket into an envelope and seal it. stated he would then take the envelope to
or .

u. On Monday, April 16, 2018, at approximately 0952 hours, I contacted on his

cellular phone , to arrange a polygraph examination. advised since our
previous conversation, he had contacted Attorney, , of The Lowry Law Firm to
represent him. asked that I arrange any further interviews with . I ended the
phone conversation with and placed a a
message for him to contact me. On Friday, April 17, 2018, I received a telephone call from
who advised would not be participating in a polygraph examination, and that any
further contact be arranged through him

5. Witnesses are as follows:

a. Missouri State Highway Patrol, Division of Drug and Crime Control Trooper Timothy S.
Craig, 287, Troop C Service Center, 5268 Flat River Road, P.O. Box 612, Park Hills, Missouri
63601, phone number 573-431-0166 Ext. 4322.

b. Missouri State Highway Patrol, Division of Drug and Crime Control Sergeant Perry L. Smith,
993, Troop C Service Center, 5268 Flat River Road, P.O. Box 612, Park Hills, Missouri 63601,
phone number 573-431-0166 Ext. 4321.

c. Missouri State Highway Patrol, Division of Drug and Crime Control Corporal Dustin B.
Reed, 988, Troop C Service Center, 5268 Flat River Road, P.O. Box 612, Park Hills, Missouri
63601, phone number 573-431-0166 Ext. 4320.

d. Missouri State Highway Patrol, Division of Drug and Crime Control Corporal Barton M.
Seymore, 641, Troop C Headquarters, 891 Technology Drive, Weldon Spring, Missouri 63304,
636-300-2800.

e. Desoto City Council Member , ,

, 63020, phone number .
f. Desoto City Council Member , ,
63020, phone number .

g. Desoto City Clerk , , 63010, phone

number .

h. Desoto Police Chief Joseph Edwards, 17 Boyd Street, Desoto, Missouri, 63020, phone
number 636-586-8891.

i. M W Recycling Manager , , 63028, phone

number .

j. Desoto Public Works Assistant Director , ,

, 63020, phone number .

k. Desoto Public Works Employee , ,

63020, phone number .

l. Desoto Public Works Employee , , 63020,

phone number .

m. Desoto Public Works Employee , ,

63020, phone number .

n. Desoto Public Works Employee , ,

63020, phone number .

o. Desoto Public Works Employee , ,

, 63023, phone number .

p. Former Desoto City Manager , ,

63020, phone number .

q. , , 63129, phone number

.

r. City of Desoto Finance Manager , ,

63020, phone number .

s. , , 63020, phone number

.

6. Evidence:

a. The documents and recordings seized in this case will be kept with the case file.

7. This investigation is closed.