ST. LOUIS – A Florida man faces federal charges after he allegedly stole checks from multiple St. Louis-area churches.
Lourdes Mario Anton, 20, was indicted Wednesday on two counts of theft of or receipt of stolen mail.
The indictment accuses Anton of stealing an envelope that contained a check from a church in O’Fallon, Missouri, on October 2, in addition to another check from a St. Peters church on the same day.
Another court motion alleges that Anton stole at least 28 checks from mailboxes at six different churches using a specialized tool.
Authorities eventually arrested Anton, uncovering a FedEx receipt that led to investigators to intercept a package that he allegedly attempted to ship to himself in Florida.
According to a federal court motion, Anton told a U.S. Postal Inspection Service special agent that he is from Romania. He also claimed that he was being paid $3,000 per month to be an altar boy in Hollywood, Florida
Investigators also learned he had an expired employment authorization card that listed his birthplace as France.
If convicted, Anton faces up to five years in prison and $250,000 in fines for each charge.
