Monia's case ordered back to Stoddard County

One of the criminal cases against Keith Monia is going back to Stoddard County, Mo.

The former insurance man was charged in April with two counts each of forgery and financial exploitation of the elderly in connection with a case in which he is accused of taking $220,000 from a Scott City couple after promising to invest the money in annuities for them.

In late August, Judge Scott Horman sent the case from Scott County to Stoddard County on a change of venue, online court records show.

In November, Judge Robert Mayer ordered a second change of venue, this time from Stoddard County to Dunklin County, Mo. Prosecutors filed a motion to reconsider the order, and on Thursday, Mayer sent the case back to Stoddard County.

The case is one of several pending against Monia, who faces additional felony charges in Scott and Cape Girardeau counties.

He is accused of defrauding nine people -- most of them elderly -- in the two counties.

A 2010 lawsuit filed by Paul Bollinger of Jackson claims Monia took $80,000 from Bollinger by promising to invest the money for him, then failing to make the investment.

The suit, which went to Wayne County, Mo., in August on a change of venue, is set for a June 11 jury trial.

Meanwhile, three sets of criminal charges have been filed against Monia this year, alleging he took money from other people through similar means.

The case now pending in Stoddard County triggered an investigation in Cape Girardeau County that led to eight similar counts against him there and three new charges in Scott County.

Monia's next court date on the new Scott County charges is Feb. 13, online court records show.

He has not yet been arraigned on the Cape Girardeau County charges.

Monia's wife, Tammy, filed for divorce Dec. 5 in Stoddard County Circuit Court, bringing to five the number of cases pending against him.

epriddy@semissourian.com

388-3642

Pertinent address:

Stoddard County, MO