An Eldon man and a Joplin woman are accused of stealing checks from mailboxes in Cole County.
Jamie Hodges, 42, of Eldon, is charged with stealing and forgery.
Tyler-Anne Whetstone, 29, of Joplin, is charged with stealing, forgery and possession of a controlled substance.
Deputies responded to a report of a theft Friday in the 2700 block of Route T, according to a Cole County Sheriff's Department probable cause statement.
The victim said he saw a vehicle pull up to his mailbox and take the mail out.
Deputies later spotted the suspect vehicle on Route NN and reportedly saw it commit a traffic violation by crossing the center line.
The vehicle was stopped with Hodges driving, and Whetstone was his passenger. Hodges was found to have an active warrant out of Jasper County, and Whetstone was found to have an active warrant out of Newton County. Both were arrested.
Deputies searched the vehicle and reportedly found multiple pieces of mail under the center console. There were 10 checks from one victim totaling $1,325. Another check for $200 from a victim's business was also found, along with two checks from two different victims from another jurisdiction totaling $438.
Deputies also reportedly found three sets of counterfeit checks using information from victims to make the checks look authentic.
Hodges and Whetstone claimed not to know anything about the checks, but allegedly she was heard on a patrol car camera recording saying, "They found where I hid the (expletive)."
Whetstone reportedly denied to deputies she was in possession of narcotics. However, using a body scanner, jailers found she had hidden something on her person. When she turned it over to the jailers, they allegedly determined it was a glass pipe containing methamphetamine.