East Prairie man charged with victim tampering

EAST PRAIRIE, Mo. - An East Prairie man faces an additional charge after threatening his victim.

Van Lynn Owens, 47, who was already in jail on multiple burglary charges, now is charge of the felony of tampering with a victim in a felony prosecution, according to Mississippi County Sheriff Cory Hutcheson. He is scheduled to be arraigned on the new charge Wednesday before Associate Judge S. Rob Barker.

Hutcheson reported the investigation began early into the new year when he and Captain Barry Morgan were contacted by a resident whose property had previously been burglarized by Owens.

"The resident reported that he had recently received a phone call from Van Owens during which Owens had threatened the man to seek dismissal of the charges against him," Hutcheson said in a news release.

Owens remains in the Mississippi County Detention Center with a total bond set at $100,000.