Arrest made in East Prairie burglary

CHARLESTON, Mo. -- A Sikeston resident faces charges for her role in an East Prairie burglary investigated by the Mississippi County Sheriff's Department.

Allie Jahala Halfacre, 22, of Sikeston, is charged with second degree burglary and theft/stealing of property valued in excess of $500.

According to Mississippi County Sheriff Keith Moore, the investigation began early last week when an East Prairie resident contacted Deputy Cory Hutcheson after noticing jewelry and other items missing from inside her home.

During the course of the investigation, which included several interviews with potential witnesses conducted by Deputy Mark Higgins and Hutcheson, the deputies developed information that a former East Prairie resident -- Halfacre -- had attempted to sell several pieces of unique and identifiable jewelry stolen from the victim to a Sikeston business.

On Wednesday, Hutcheson located Halfacre at a Charleston address and requested she come to the Mississippi County Detention Center to participate in a videotaped interview.

Halfacre agreed, and an interview conducted by Capt. Ken Story and Hutcheson contributed to the development of probable cause to believe Halfacre and a juvenile had stolen jewelry and electronics from the East Prairie residence.

At the conclusion of the interview, Halfacre was arrested and booked into the Mississippi County Detention Center.

On Thursday, deputies coordinated with the Mississippi County Juvenile Office to locate and interview the juvenile. At the conclusion of that interview, the juvenile was referred to her local Juvenile Office for handling consistent with state procedures.

The stolen property was reportedly divided between the Halfacre and the juvenile, and despite the timely arrests, the majority of the items have not been recovered

As of press time, Halfacre remained in the Mississippi County Detention Center with bond set at $25,000.

"The Mississippi County Sheriff's Department would like to thank the Mississippi and Stoddard County Juvenile Offices for their assistance with this investigation," Moore said.

For this story and more, see the Sunday edition of the Standard Democrat.