Burglary suspects caught in Belle

By Neal A. Johnson, UD Editor
Posted 6/18/20

A green Chevy Cavalier parked in the driveway of a vacant residence in Belle at 1:45 p.m. Friday sparked the curiosity and suspicion of the property owner, who summoned help.

The driver of the …

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Burglary suspects caught in Belle

Posted

A green Chevy Cavalier parked in the driveway of a vacant residence in Belle at 1:45 p.m. Friday sparked the curiosity and suspicion of the property owner, who summoned help.

The driver of the car, later identified as Von A. Brown, 20, of Chamois, was reportedly hunched down in the seat when the property owner pulled up behind him. Brown honked the horn three times, and fled the scene, starting a hunt for three would-be burglars who had been caught in the act.

Lt. Justin Carnes in his probable cause statement noted the rear door had been damaged when it was forced open, and there were fresh tracks caused by foot traffic in the tall grass behind the residence.

Several drawers and cabinets had been opened in the laundry room, and items had been removed from a dresser drawer in a bedroom. However, nothing appeared to be missing from the residence.

“Due to the circumstances, we believed that the Cavalier was parked in front of the residence while other subjects were inside committing burglary,” said Carnes.

It also appeared that the unknown burglars had fled into the woods behind the house on Highway 89 South near Route Y. Cpl. Ricky Jarvis responded to the scene with K-9 Zed, and a search began.

An all-points bulletin was sent out to neighboring counties as well.

Brown was later taken into custody in Gasconade County, and transported to the Osage County Jail.

The two other suspects, Heather M. Jackson, 31, of Owensville, and Devin L. Gehlert, 32, of Belle, were located about three hours later by local residents walking on Osage County Road 715. Deputies from Maries and Osage counties quickly moved in and took them into custody without incident.

Sheriff Mike Bonham said he appreciates the help of surrounding agencies.

“We wish to thank the Gasconade and Maries County Sheriffs’ Offices for their help in quickly apprehending the subjects,” he said. “It is great have the neighboring agencies jump in and help at a moment’s notice.”

Both suspects said they had come down from behind the school and walked down the creek. Jackson was taken into custody on a warrant from the Vienna Police Department. During a frisk of Gehlert, deputies found marijuana.

Gehlert told Capt. Travis Shaffer that the green Cavalier was owned by Von, but refused to say anything more unless deputies promised not to take him to jail. Jackson told deputies she didn’t know what was going on, a statement she would later change.

During transport to the jail, Jackson told Jarvis they were having car trouble and pulled into to driveway, but insisted that she and her dog went to a nearby pond, where she met up with Gehlert 15 minutes later.

Shaffer reported that Gehlert admitted during transport to the jail to being in the car driven by Brown, along with Jackson. Gehlert further said that Brown was driving poorly on Route Y, which caused Jackson to become distressed. His claim is that he and Jackson were let out of the vehicle at the residence next door to the driveway in which Brown and his car were initially spotted.

When Brown was questioned, he advised Gasconade County deputies that his vehicle had been stolen that morning from the park in Belle, and he had recovered it at the park in Bland. In fact, he said he was just about to visit the Maries County Sheriff’s Office to report the car stolen.

During a consent search of the vehicle, Carnes found a toy John Deere chainsaw and a white trash bag full of clothes, which Brown said had been left in the car by whomever had stolen it.

According to Brown, he did not know Jackson or Gehlert.

Carnes noted in the PC statement that he had seen similar toys at the residence in Belle, and that the variety of female clothing appeared to be about Jackson’s size. Brown also told deputies there was a pellet gun between the driver’s seat and center console that was not his, which Carnes seized.

As Brown was taken to the Osage County Jail, he told Carnes that he had lied about his car being stolen because he had just gotten out of prison.

Another lie clarified is that Brown had known Gehlert as a friend for about a year.

When Gehlert asked for a ride to his aunt’s house, Brown obliged, adding he believed the residence at which he was parked belonged to Gehlert’s aunt. Gehlert reportedly brought the bag of clothes with him. Jackson had accompanied Gehlert to Brown’s house.

According to court documents, Brown said he parked in front of the residence, as Gehlert said he needed to get a few things from the house, where he claimed to have been living with his aunt.

Jackson and Gehlert went around to the back of the house, according to Brown, and returned moments later with the toy chainsaw. The pair then returned to the residence, and Brown said he honked his horn once to indicate he was leaving, but told Carnes that he did not leave at a high rate of speed, and was unaware that anyone had pulled up behind him. Further, Brown said he did not commit a burglary or see anyone who did.

Jackson’s account differed in virtually every detail. She told Carnes that Brown had arrived at her aunt’s house in Belle looking for Gehlert because he needed help working on his car. Jackson said Brown drove them to Lange’s Creek on CR 735 or 737 to work on the car there.

While they were looking at the vehicle, Jackson said she went for a swim in the creek. When they left the creek, the car started acting up, so they pulled into the residence in question to continue working on it.

Admitting she did not know who lived there, Jackson said she walked to the rear of the house with her dog to the pond, and was alone there for about 20 minutes. She said she heard a horn and saw a truck pulling into the driveway. Brown drove away, and because she didn’t know whose property she was on, Jackson said she fled into the woods. It was later that she found Gehlert walking along the creek. Jackson claimed ignorance of how the toy chainsaw made its way into the vehicle, but guessed it had been in the house. She denied committing burglary to the residence or sheds, but said a soda can that had fallen from the back of the car when Brown left was hers.

Gehlert’s version of the situation was interesting. He said he couldn’t remember if he called Brown and asked him for a ride or walked by his residence. Either way, Gehlert said he asked that Brown take him and Jackson to Lange’s Creek to swim. After they left, Brown’s erratic driving led Gehlert to ask to be let out, which is how he said they wound up at the residence in question. He changed his previous statement that they had exited the vehicle at the house next door.

According to Gehlert, he and Jackson began walking toward Belle because he feared there was a warrant out for his arrest, and he did not want to be seen. Further, he said that Jackson was with him the whole time, and he never heard a horn. In addition to claiming he never went into the residence or sheds, Gehlert said he saw no one else do so, adding he had never seen the toy chainsaw. He also told Carnes the vehicle had not broken down.

Bonham has requested charges on all three suspects for burglary in the second degree, property damage in the second degree, and stealing.