Wapakoneta man charged in scam to free girlfriend
False document ordered early release for woman held in jail.
A Wapakoneta man LEBANON — remained in the Warren County Jail on Wednesday after being accused of using a fake document to get his girlfriend released from jail in December.
The indictment of Lance Stout, 38, was among those on a list released this week by the Warren County Prosecutor’s office.
Stout was arrested on Jan. 10 by a Shelby County deputy and was being held without bond, according to jail records.
He was scheduled for arraignment Wednesday in Warren County Common Pleas Court on the charge of using a sham legal process, a fourth-degree felony.
Stout allegedly used a free fax obtained through a Google app to send a fake release document to the county sheriff ’s office.
The sheriff ’s office, which manages the jail, received the document on Dec. 2, according to an incident report.
Lebanon court records indicate the girlfriend, Katie Mrozinski, aka Katie Garrett, was in jail for a probation violation.
Mrozinski, 27, of Middletown, was scheduled for release on Jan. 20 and not listed in the county jail Wednesday.
Stout was charged as the result of an investigation begun after the Lebanon court officials told jail officials the release form “did not come from their office,” according to the report, obtained through a public-records request.
Investigators obtained the number the fax was sent from, as well as a letter in November from Stout to Municipal Court Judge Mark Bogen seeking the early release and sent from the same fax number.
On Nov. 5 and Jan. 10, Bogen denied Stout’s requests for Mrozinski’s early release, according to on-line Lebanon Municipal Court records.
A Jan. 10 court entry indicates a request for an emergency furlough was denied because her “fiance is not currently hospitalized.”
The fax number was traced to a Texas company that told investigators the number was used by a wholesale customer, according to the incident report.
Detective Christopher Wong determined Stout lived in Wapakoneta and listened to jail phone conversations between him and the girlfriend, according to the report.
Wong said he determined the girlfriend was unaware of the fraudulent fax.
“Any occasion she spoke about in regards to getting out of jail revolved around her scheduled out date of January 2019,” Wong said in the report.
Wong and another detective attempted to interview Stout at his home.
“Although he was not there, we were able to meet with his mother, who called him,” Wong said.
Stout admitted writing the letter, sent through email, but failed to show up for an arranged meeting at the sheriff ’s office in Lebanon, according to the report.
Stout also revealed he had a free fax through a Google app he allegedly used to send the fraudulent release, according to the report.
“The only purpose such a document has is to facilitate the commission of an escape,” Wong said in the report.
Detectives also obtained evidence from Stout’s computer indicating he created the fraudulent order, according to Warren County Prosecutor David Fornshell.
Stout was charged on Jan. 7 in Lebanon court, arrested and held in the jail in Lebanon in lieu of $25,000 bail, pending his indictment.
Stout was held without bond on Feb. 4 after the indictment was issued by Magistrate Andrew Hasselbach, according to jail records.