The Kansas Attorney General’s Office has highlighted a recent Lyon County arrest.
Attorney General Kris Kobach has announced that formal charges have been filed against Demetrius Lamont Odom, a resident of Decader, Georgia. Odom was arrested on Saturday morning on suspicion of committing identity theft, criminal use of a financial card, and conspiracy to criminally use a financial card. According to Kobach, Odom is accused of stealing from several liquor stores across Kansas, including four in Emporia: Carlos Liquor, Emporia Liquor & Wine, Liquor Locker, and The Liquor Store. Odom now faces a total of seven charges, which include four counts of identity theft, two counts of criminal use of a card, and one count of conspiracy.
Odom, 30, has at least one co-defendant. In July, Kentucky jailed Dwayne Rhoden for unrelated felony charges. Kobach claims Rhoden refuses to waive extradition; therefore, officials are pursuing a governor’s warrant to transfer court proceedings to Kansas.
Kobach views the Odom case as significant as it marks his office’s first conviction for organized retail crime since the passage of a state law reform last year. The Kansas Legislature authorized prosecutors to pursue felony charges in retail crimes, including organized crime incidents, rather than minor theft prosecutions.
Odom’s preliminary hearing date is October 21.
