Missouri probationer charged with impound lot burglary

AUBURN -  A transient,  who is on probation out of Missouri, is charged in Nemaha County with burglary, conspiracy and possession of methamphetamine on Oct. 22.

An arrest affidavit says sheriff’s deputies were dispatched to the county’s impound lot in rural Auburn, where a fence and surveillance camera had earlier been damaged.

Deputies say they found Steven Smith, 55, hiding beneath a trailer inside the lot. An affidavit says a Jeep Cherokee that had been reported stolen out of Omaha was found nearby.

Smith told deputies he was in the lot because he is homeless and was trying to get out of the weather. He denied knowledge of the stolen Jeep, the methamphetamine and burglar tools.

Deputies say a photo taken by the broken camera shows a bandana similar to the one Smith was wearing at his arrest.