Two St. Joseph Residents Charged After Posing as FedEx Staff to Take $150,000 From Casino

Prosecutors have charged a man and a woman from St. Joseph after more than $150,000 was taken from the Frontier Casino on Sunday. According to a court document, the pair persuaded a security guard that they worked for FedEx and were due to receive the money.

The court document says the casino received a phone call at about 7 a.m. Sunday from someone the casino employee believed was with FedEx. The employee relayed the call to a security supervisor, who then spoke by phone with a person who gave his name as Matthew Martinez.

The two men discussed the earlier FedEx call, according to the document. Martinez told the supervisor that the casino's general manager had approved releasing the money.

At around 8:40 a.m., a black Jeep Compass with a Missouri license plate pulled onto the casino property. About two minutes later, the security supervisor came out of the building carrying a box that held $150,000 and handed it to the male driver. The driver and a woman riding as a passenger then left the casino.

Members of the Missouri State Highway Patrol's Gaming Division were notified of the theft. The vehicle was later located on U.S. Highway 36, where deputies from the Macon County Sheriff's Office and Missouri State Highway Patrol troopers stopped it with the man and woman inside.

Charles E. Blaisdell, Jr. and Heaven L.R. Roberts, both of St. Joseph, were charged in Buchanan County Court with one count of receiving stolen property. Their bonds were set at $150,000.

The investigation into the theft is continuing.

Anyone with information about a crime can contact their local police department directly. People who wish to remain anonymous can reach the Greater Kansas City Crime Stoppers Tips Hotline at 816-474-TIPS (8477), or submit a tip online or through the free mobile app at P3Tips.com. Depending on the tip, Crime Stoppers could offer a cash reward.