Two young men, ages 18 and 19, from Sulphur Rock have been charged in Independence County Circuit Court with stealing money from Cedar Ridge School.
Court documents say the burglary and resulting theft occurred in mid-January after school ball games on Friday, Jan. 11, at Cedar Ridge School.
The court record from the Affidavit of Probable Cause for Arrest says two men in a red Ford Mustang went to the school in the morning of Saturday, Jan. 12, with the passenger entering the school and exiting in about 15 minutes.
Cedar Ridge School Resource Officer Ashley Edwards said the school was closed at that time and no other persons were present. The two men in the vehicle were recognized by Edwards as Liam Seth Crotts, 18, the driver, and Tyler Lee Corson, 19, the passenger. Both are former students.
Edwards said on Sunday, Jan. 13, in the 2 a.m. hour, the two came back to the school, and, via school video footage, Corson was observed entering the facility and leaving after a few minutes.
Video footage obtained from a nearby store that was taken at 2:44 a.m. was seen by Edwards who reported seeing Corson and Crotts in the Mustang. Corson was seen with what appeared to be a bundle of money and then providing Crotts with some of that money.
In an interview, Crotts said he was given $100 from the theft. In a separate interview with authorities, Corson said he gave Crotts half of the money he took. Corson said he just took $200 dollars, so he gave Crotts $100, and he kept $100 dollars.
The school said it was determined that a total of $2,145 in cash was missing, with money missing from more than one bag that had already been counted and recorded.
Before it can be deposited in the bank, the money from the games was kept in a locked office in the administration office area of Cedar Ridge School.
Corson said the two came back to the school on Jan. 13 because he heard a noise when he was in the school on Jan. 12, and thought someone else was in the school, so he left without taking anything.
Both Crotts and Corson were arrested and taken to the Independence County Jail. Each has been charged in circuit court with commercial burglary and theft of property, both felonies. (A theft is a felony when the stolen property is valued at $1,000 or more.)
Both men have been placed on $2,500 bond.
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