Promise of sex leads to armed robbery charges
An Oshkosh couple faces felony charges after police say they used a BB gun to rob a man who was expecting to have a sexual encounter.
Caitlin S. Howard, 24, and Levi W. St. Pierre, 29, each are charged in Winnebago County Circuit Court with one count of armed robbery. Court Commissioner Bryan Keberlein determined there was enough evidence for the cases to proceed and continued a $5,000 cash bond for Howard and a $50,000 cash bond for St. Pierre.
According to the criminal complaint, Howard and St. Pierre went to an Oshkosh man's apartment Jan. 24, where they stuck a BB gun to the back of his head, stole his wallet and the cash in it, his debit card and PIN, along with laundry money and a smartphone, before using the debit card to withdraw $200 from the man's checking account at a nearby gas station.
Howard later told police she had been chatting with the victim on the website meetme.com and using him to get money, though the two never had sex, according to the complaint. The victim previously withdrew money for her from his bank account, and Howard had left a laptop at his apartment as collateral. On Jan. 24, Howard and St. Pierre went to get the laptop back because her 2-year-old daughter uses it to watch DVDs.
The couple needed money because neither one of them work, according to the criminal complaint.
In an interview with police, St. Pierre said the victim voluntarily gave Howard his debit card but said he did not know why the man's phone and wallet were missing, according to the complaint.
Authorities arrested St. Pierre and took him to the Winnebago County Jail, where phone calls between him and Howard led police to search Howard's vehicle and house, according to the complaint. Howard eventually showed police where she had hidden St. Pierre's BB gun, which the couple had used in the robbery.
Howard said she got pregnant six months ago, one week after meeting St. Pierre on the website plentyoffish.com, and "her life has turned in a downward spiral since," causing her to do "some things that she would never do normally," according to the criminal complaint.
If convicted, the couple each could face a maximum sentence of 40 years in prison. Their next court appearance is scheduled for Monday.
Reach Nathaniel Shuda at 920-426-6632 or nshuda@thenorthwestern.com; on Twitter: @onwnshuda.