Aurora man faces 3 felonies after theft of $211

By Kyle Troutman ktroutman@cassville-democrat.com

An Aurora man is facing three felonies for his alleged robbery of the Wheaton Fastrip convenience store on Thursday morning.

Jonathan Worthington, 38, of Aurora, is charged with first-degree robbery, armed criminal action and unlawful possession of a firearm.

According to a probable cause statement filed by Clint Danforth, Wheaton police chief, an employee of Fastrip reported a man came into the store and pointed a firearm at him, demanding money.

Management from the store said approximately $211 was taken from the register.

Worthington is allegedly pictured on surveillance footage at about 12:50 a.m. pulling into the parking lot in a 2008 Volkswagen Jetta, which Danforth said had no license plates.

“He pulled up, ran in, demanded money, then drove north on Highway 86,” Danforth said. “He was inside for about a minute, and it was just him and the cashier in there.”

Danforth said there were no injuries.

During the course of the investigation, Danforth said about 50 leads were received and checked, and multiple tips pointed in Worthington’s direction.

In the probable cause statement, Danforth said there was a female subject in the vehicle who was later interviewed at the Barry County Sheriff’s Office The witness, whose name is being withheld because she is not being charged, stated Worthington went in the store to get money, pointed a gun at the cashier and took money from the store.

She said they pulled into the lot once, then left south on Highway 86 to Highway W, but Worthington returned to the store. Once in the parking lot, she said he put on a mask, retrieved a firearm from under the season and went into the store.

“This does match the events documented on surveillance cameras at the Fastrip convenience store in Wheaton,” Danforth said. “Jonathan also has a 2008 Volkswagen Jetta that matches the suspect vehicle on Fastrip convenience store surveillance video. The vehicle was later recovered at the [female witness’] mother’s residence in Verona.”

With a population of 625, Wheaton has little history with gun crimes, Danforth said.

“We’ve only had a few serious gun crimes, and those were a few years ago and were personal,” he said. “Other than that, we have not had any issues. We have our little stuff, but we are pretty laid back here.”

Danforth said the biggest help to the investigation was the community and the number of tips the department received.

“We greatly appreciate how the community came together and called in several tips that led this investigation and led to the eventual capture of this individual,” Danforth said. “Without the community, this could have been very hard to solve in such a timely manner.”

Worthington is being held in the Barry County jail on a cash-only bond of $100,000. A court date has yet to be set.