Moberly man pleads guilty to federal ID theft charge
COLUMBIA - A Moberly man pleaded guilty to a federal charge of aggravated identity theft and will be sentenced in January.
Lawrence Warfel pleaded guilty on October 10; two other charges, theft of government funds and unlawful transfer/possession/use of another's means of identification with the intent to commit a felony, were dropped as part of a plea agreement. The agreement further stated Warfel will be sentenced to two years in prison.
Court documents said Warfel's wife Penny disappeared in 2017. Prior to that, her Social Security benefits went toward paying various bills. After she disappeared, the bill payments stopped, and Penny Warfel's benefits were withdrawn from an ATM. Investigators determined Lawrence Warfel was the one taking the money out. They said he also used her food stamp card after she disappeared.
Warfel still faces a charge in Randolph County of financial exploitation of an elderly person.