Marine charged with stealing vehicles, burglary

A U.S. Marine has been charged with several counts of stealing vehicles and burglary while allegedly attempting to flee from the country.

Garrett E. Phippen, 20, of Fort Leonard Wood, faces several charges in Phelps County, according to Missouri case.net.

According to case.net, Phippen has been charged in three separate cases with two counts of stealing a motor vehicle, one count of receiving stolen property, four counts of burglary in the second degree, and two counts of theft/stealing of property valued between $500 and $25,000, all Class C felonies.

As of Thursday morning, Phippen only faces charges in Phelps County, but he could face charges in other counties as he may have allegedly been involved in other crimes in several counties in Missouri while trying to flee.

Multiple law enforcement agencies, including the Rolla Police Department and Phelps County Sheriff's Department, as well as officers in other counties assisted with the investigation of the cases.

The first case began with an investigation by the Phelps County Sheriff's Department July 14 regarding the recovery of a possible stolen vehicle from Pulaski County, according to a probable cause statement.

During the investigation, the sheriff's office learned that a person tried to pry open a door to a business in the 15000 block of County Road 7100 near Rolla and removed $600 and several sets of keys to vehicles at a used car lot.

The statement went on to say the person used the keys and took a 2003 GMC Yukon that belonged to the business and was for sale. The vehicle was later found abandoned in Pacific.

Phippen admitted to the above crimes, according to the statement, and also told the sheriff's department that his intent was to go AWOL from the Marines and make his way to Canada to avoid extradition. He later changed his mind, turned around and decided to head to Mexico.

Then in a separate incident on July 21, according to a press release from the RPD, officers responded to a business in the 500 block of East 19th Street as well as the Rolla City Animal Shelter on Sharp Road for reported burglaries.

While investigating at the animal shelter, officers discovered that the Rolla City Street Department building also on Sharp Road had been burglarized too. An undetermined amount of cash was taken during the burglaries, the police said.

The suspect, identified as Phippen, and a blue Dodge quad cab truck, the vehicle he was driving, were captured on surveillance footage.

Then in a third incident on July 22, according to a separate probable cause statement, the sheriff's department was dispatched to the 18000 block of County Road 1000 near St. James for a report of a stolen vehicle.

A reporting party told a deputy that a black Dodge pickup truck pulled into the reporting party's property. The driver, who later was identified at Phippen, then drove off with a silver Dodge Cummins Diesel belonging to the reporting party.

The Missouri State Highway Patrol located the Dodge Cummins Diesel and a sheriff's deputy was dispatched to the location and confronted Phippen, who matched a description given by the reporting party.

Phippen told the deputy initially that the Dodge Cummins Diesel was his friend's but later said he took a cab from Fort Leonard Wood to Cuba, where he took a black Dodge flatbed and was traveling back west on Interstate 44 to St. Robert.

The statement said the flatbed started having trouble, so Phippen pulled off the interstate and onto County Road 1000, where he admitted to taking the Dodge Cummins Diesel from the reporting party.

Phippen told the deputy at the time that he stole the vehicles to escape from the Marines and go to Mexico in fear of being harmed by a fellow soldier.