Traffic stop leads to seizure of stolen items from storage units

A late-night traffic stop resulted in the arrest of a convicted thief and the seizure of stolen goods from a storage unit as well as methamphetamine, police say.

Joshua Ray Myers, 32, faces second-degree burglary charges, possession of burglary tools, two stealing charges and possession of a controlled substance after being pulled over around 1 a.m. Monday, May 6.

Myers is in Cape Girardeau County jail on a $15,000 cash-only bond issued by Judge Frank Miller.

The charges stemmed from a traffic stop after an officer determined the truck’s license plates were “not on file” with the Missouri Department of Revenue, according to a probable-cause statement produced by an officer whose name was redacted.

Myers was with a woman driving the Ford Ranger that was stopped. The officer obtained permission to search the vehicle. The officer found a pack of cigarettes, which contained two plastic baggies containing about 2 grams of methamphetamine.

The officer also found a black and blue bag that contained a pellet handgun, a black ski mask, bolt cutters, wire cutters, a Chromebook laptop and a touch-screen tablet.

Myers was placed under arrest. During booking, the officer found four credit/debit cards that did not bear Myers’ name. The officer made contact with people associated with the cards and they went with the officer to inspect their storage unit.

“We discovered the original lock was missing, and a locking tag had been placed on the unit by the business and then cut off. The green locking tag was found lying on the ground and the unit door was still open.”

One of the victims identified the two devices as being inside the storage unit.

At the time of his arrest, Myers was on parole for burglary and stealing, according to the probable-cause statement.