FALLS CITY – The Richardson County attorney’s office is bringing charges against at least five people suspected of involvement in a theft crew that targeted catalytic converters in Missouri, Iowa and Nebraska, including Otoe, Nemaha and Richardson counties.

The sheriff’s office says an investigation spanning six months includes more than 11 incidents of catalytic converters being cut from vehicles and three trucks stolen.

The attorney’s office has sought 13 arrest warrants naming five people from St. Joseph, including David Sprague Jr., 43.

Sprague is suspected of stealing catalytic converters from Falls City on Oct. 4, stealing a Chevy Silverado K2500 truck owned by James Zentner on Oct. 4 and stealing a Dodge Ram 2500 truck owned by Michael Kirkendall on Oct. 24. Sprague is also charged as a conspirator in the theft of a Dodge Ram pickup owned by Cory Snethen in December.

The conspiracy is laid out in an arrest affidavit submitted to the court to obtain arrest warrants for Sprague, 43-year-old Lucifer Jones, 33-year-old Jessica Beltz and 43-year-old Scott Robinson.

Chase Engel, 25, is charged with stealing the Snethen truck. A citizen reported seeing the $65,000 truck in  Craig, Mo., and St. Joseph, Mo., police arrested Engel after obtaining pawn shop video.

The affidavit says catalytic converters were cut off vehicles in Falls City, including two vans owned by Meyer Home Center, a bus owned by the Senior Citizen’s Center and a bus owned by Falls City Care Center.

Jones is suspected of driving with Sprague to Nebraska City and Auburn to “scout out” locations to steal catalytic converters. The affidavit says catalytic converters were stolen from a mail truck in Auburn and Richardson County expects charges are pending in that case.

The affidavit describes Beltz as “the cutter” because of her speed in getting beneath vehicles with a saw and removing the catalytic converters.

Robinson is suspected of taking a catalytic converter from a motor home.