Former police officer turns self in for stealing

BENTON, Mo. -- A former police officer for the cities of Chaffee, Mo., and Jackson turned himself in to Chaffee police Friday and posted a $15,000 bond on a felony stealing charge.

According to a Scott County Sheriff's Department news release, David Rubel, 37, of Chaffee, reportedly conspired with Nicole L. Beaulieu, 28, of Minnesota, to steal a 1990 GMC vehicle impounded in a Sikeston, Mo., storage yard March 8.

Rubel was a Chaffee police officer when he met Beaulieu, a Scott County inmate in the Chaffee jail, the report said.

Beaulieu and another person were riding in the car in February when they were stopped by Miner, Mo., police and arrested for possession of controlled substances, the report said.

The vehicle belonged to a third party in Minnesota, the report said, but Rubel and Beaulieu are alleged to have gone to the impound yard March 8 where Rubel reportedly identified himself as a Jackson police officer and vouched for Beaulieu's ownership of the vehicle.

Rubel reportedly paid a discounted amount for the towing and storage fees against the vehicle and left the premises with it, the report said.

Rubel had not officially started his job as a Jackson police officer on the day the pair visited the impound yard, Jackson police chief James Humphreys said Friday.

Rubel was hired away from the Chaffee Police Department and worked one day -- March 12 -- at the Jackson Police Department, Humphreys said. When the department learned of the allegations, he said, Rubel was placed on administrative leave.

"We investigated it thoroughly, and he was terminated," Humphreys said.

Scott County Sheriff's Department investigators were notified and, after an investigation, applied for warrants for both subjects through Prosecuting Attorney Paul Boyd, the report said.

Beaulieu remains in custody in lieu of an additional $15,000 bond.

Southeast Missourian writer Rudi Keller contributed to this report.

carel@semissourian.com

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