Cole County Grand Jury indicts five this week

This week, the Cole County grand jury handed down several indictments, finding there were enough evidence in these cases to send them onto the circuit courts for possible trial.

Among those indicted were:

• A Cole County man facing multiple charges after a brief standoff with authorities in July. Court documents show Robert Haaf, 52, of 5015 Shady Lane, is charged with first-degree endangering the welfare of a child, third-degree domestic assault and false imprisonment.

A Cole County Sheriff's Department probable cause statement said the incident occurred at Haaf 's residence. Authorities said Haaf had gotten into an argument with a female relative who tried to leave the residence with her two children to try and de-escalate the situation. The woman said Haaf took her purse, which had her car keys and cell phone inside, so she couldn't leave. He later kicked in the front door, damaging the door and door frame.

When deputies approached the front door, Haaf shut the door and pushed a couch in front of it to prevent anyone from getting in. Deputies attempted to contact Haaf for about an hour. He came to the door and looked out, and saw deputies pointing guns at the house.

Haaf then went back inside and picked up one of the children and had her in his arms when he walked outside. At first, he refused to put the child down when ordered by authorities to do so. They said they didn't know if he was armed so they kept their weapons on him. Eventually, he was peacefully taken into custody.

• Three women from Columbia facing multiple charges for stealing items from stores in Jefferson City in July, then trying to get rid of them by throwing them out of a moving car while being chased by authorities.

Shanell Rena Fox-Brown, 25, is charged with two counts of felony stealing and one count each of first-degree child endangerment, resisting arrest and misdemeanor stealing.

Victoria Simone Thompson, 20, is charged with two counts of felony stealing and one count each of first-degree child endangerment, tampering with physical evidence and misdemeanor stealing.

Kaytlen Hill, 19, is charged with two counts of felony stealing and one count each of tampering with physical evidence and misdemeanor stealing.

The women went to Dillard's at Capital Mall and stole more than $200 worth of merchandise before heading to Dick's Sporting Goods on Stoneridge Parkway and taking nearly $700 in items by concealing them in their purses.

At Kohl's on Stoneridge Parkway, the women selected items and carried them into fitting rooms. They each took turns concealing the merchandise, which was valued at more than $500.

When confronted by store security, the women fled the store. The women got into a vehicle driven by Fox-Brown and sped off.

Fox-Brown led officers on a chase that went from Missouri Boulevard onto U.S. 54 and into Callaway County before getting into an accident. She and the others were then taken into custody. When questioned by officers, Fox-Brown admitted there was an infant in the vehicle when she and her accomplices fled from authorities. She said she came to Jefferson City to steal items because she was homeless and needed money. The infant in the vehicle was Thompson's 2-month-old son.

Authorities said Thompson unbuckled the child's car seat during the pursuit in order to gain access to the trunk where the stolen items were located. Thompson and Hill then threw the items out of the vehicle.

Thompson said she didn't steal anything, nor did she see the others steal items. She said she left Kohl's because her child was crying and was in the vehicle when Fox-Brown and Hill ran from the store. She also said she told Fox-Brown to stop when police began to chase them and that she didn't unsecure her son from his car seat until after the accident.

Hill admitted to stealing items from the stores and throwing the merchandise out of the vehicle during the pursuit. She also said Thompson was handing her items to throw out.

• A resident of the Dulle-Hamilton Towers who was charged with selling narcotics. Christina Schaffer, 37, was charged with possession of heroin and unlawful use of drug paraphernalia. During a search of the apartment that Schaffer was staying at in October, authorities found a plate containing a powdery substance believed to be heroin and a metal smoking device containing burned marijuana on a coffee table.