A Florida man is facing charges after allegedly snatching checks from churches across Missouri and Illinois, according to authorities. The U.S. District Court in St. Louis indicted 20-year-old Lourdes Mario Anton on Wednesday, suspecting him of taking mail from religious institutions.
Documents filed in federal court claim the thefts occurred on October 2, pointing to incidents at a church in O’Fallon, Missouri, and another in St. Peters on the same day. The indictment, referencing at least 28 checks stolen from six different churches, alleges Anton used a specialized tool to execute the thefts, officials reported. During the investigation, police reportedly discovered a FedEx receipt on Anton, which led to the interception of a package directed to Florida, containing the stolen checks.
In a twist concerning his background, Anton, who conversed with a special agent from the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, claimed he hailed from Romania while possessing an expired employment authorization card indicating France as his birthplace. In a statement that seems curious, he professed to be contracted as an altar boy in Hollywood, Florida, fetching a salary of $3,000 per month.
If convicted of the mail theft charges he faces, Anton could see up to 5 years behind bars, suffer a $250,000 fine, or both prison and a fine for each charge. The U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the St. Charles County Police Department investigated the alleged crimes, with Assistant U.S. Attorney Gwen Carroll at the helm of the prosecution.
