Mideast men in Missouri buy 200+ cell phones possibly steal over 40 propane tank

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The bulk purchases of more than 200 cellphones from seven Missouri Walmarts over the course of a single weekend continues to draw the attention of law enforcement – particularly combined with the theft of more than 48 propane canisters in the state during the same time frame.

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Police in Columbia, Jackson, Cape Girardeau, Lebanon, Ava, Jefferson City and Macon have each said they’ve received reports about large numbers of cellphones bought in area Walmarts. The majority of purchases occurred during the late-night hours of Dec. 4 and the early-morning hours of Dec. 5.

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The individuals involved have been reported to be as few as two men in Lebanon and as many as five in Columbia. It’s unclear if all of the cases involve the same people or if they are linked, but the same man reportedly was part of the purchasing group in Ava and Lebanon, which happened a little more than two hours apart on Dec. 5.

That man left a phone in the store bathroom at Ava, prompting authorities to respond.

“While speaking with Walmart employees, the subject who left the phone returned to the store to get it,” the Ava Police Department posted on Facebook. “Officers spoke with the male subject, who was of Middle Eastern descent, and asked for identification, which was provided.”

Officers had no reason to detain the man and he was allowed to leave. Subsequent checks with other local Walmart stores determined the man also had bought phones in Lebanon.

“These people were, they were foreign-speaking,” Laclede County Sheriff Wayne Merritt told KSPR about the men who bought phones at the Lebanon Walmart.

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Terrorists have long used mobile phones to set off explosive ordinances, and propane tanks have been used in improvised bombs. For example, the thwarted car bomb attack in Times Square in 2010 was set to use four propane tanks as part of the explosive device.

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