(Stillwater, Okla.) — A Cushing man is being sought on a Payne County felony charge of possessing a truck stolen in Stillwater that was recovered in Texas, court records show.
Justin Lee Ware, 31, is also being sought on a Creek County charge of first-degree burglary and possessing stolen property, court records show.
If convicted of possessing a 2000 Dodge Dakota truck stolen in Stillwater, Ware could be given as much as a five-year prison term, court records show.
If convicted of possessing a bank debit card stolen in a burglary of the Stillwater couple’s home, Ware could be given a one-year jail term, court records show.
An arrest warrant was issued for Ware on Jan. 31 of this year in Payne County in connection with the stolen truck and bank card, court records show.
Ware was already being sought on Nov. 6, 2018, on Creek County charges of first-degree burglary and concealing stolen property, court records show.
In the Payne County case, Stillwater Police Detective John Paul Johnson was assigned to follow up on a report of a debit card taken in a residential burglary on Dec. 31, 2017, when the owners’ truck was also stolen, according to his affidavit.
The victims had been notified by their bank that their debit card “was being used around Stillwater while the couple was out of town. They contacted police, who discovered the burglary and auto theft,” the affidavit said.
One of the fraudulent debit card charges was at the Walmart on W. 6th Street in Stillwater at about 7 a.m. on Dec. 31, 2017, for $25.07, according to the affidavit.
Video footage and a still image of the suspect provided by Walmart showed a white male wearing a red “Nebraska” sweatshirt, blue jeans and a baseball cap, the affidavit said.
“The transaction receipt shows several denied transaction attempts due to ‘PIN error’ before a successful transaction,” the affidavit said.
A video clip showed the suspect with his purchase leaving in a white Dodge Dakota pickup with a Texas license tag that matched the vehicle stolen in Stillwater, the affidavit said.
“This all took place earlier on the same day that the victim called police to report the suspicious activity, 12-31-17, which led to the discovery of the burglary and auto theft,” the affidavit said.
“On 1-9-18 I had an image from the Walmart video posted to the Stillwater Police Facebook page in an attempt to identify the suspect. On 1-10-18 I received an anonymous tip through the department’s tip line that the suspect’s name was Justin Ware.
“I pulled up Ware’s Facebook profile page and saw that he did match the suspect I was looking for. In addition to a facial match, he has numerous tattoos, including tattoos on the back of his left hand, which is consistent with the Walmart cash register video,” the Stillwater officer alleged in his affidavit.
“Also on 1-10-18, I was notified by Cimarron Casino staff that they had surveillance video of the person I was seeking from our Facebook post. I went to the casino and was shown a surveillance video and several still images of Ware,” dated on Dec. 31, 2017, at about 2:30 a.m., the Stillwater officer wrote in his affidavit.
“He was sitting at a gambling machine while dressed in the same red ‘Nebraska’ sweatshirt and blue jeans. The photos are very clear. The surveillance video also showed him leaving with a group of people,” according to the affidavit.
“On 1-10-18, the stolen vehicle was recovered in Iowa Park, Texas,” where a police officer said that an occupant of the vehicle told her that he bought it from Ware, the affidavit alleged.
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