Five arrested for vehicle tampering, other charges in Newton County

The following information was released by Newton County Sheriff, Matt Stewart:

On January 8, 2026 around 6:00AM, Newton County Sheriff’s Office responded to a report of a stolen vehicle in Fairview.

The vehicle was reported to have been taken during the overnight hours. Upon further investigation it was determined the vehicle was possibly in the Springfield area and was enroute back to the Newton
County area. Newton County Deputies notified Troopers with the Missouri State Highway Patrol of this information as well. A Trooper with the Missouri State Highway Patrol located the stolen vehicle westbound on Highway 60 in Barry County.

Following a brief pursuit, the vehicle crashed just east of the Newton County Line. Newton County deputies that were on the east side of the county responded to the crash to assist the trooper.

The driver, Stephen Cash Lucariello, 21 year old male of Fairview, was arrested for Tampering 1st Degree, Felony Resisting Arrest by Fleeing, Unlawful Possession of a Firearm, Felony Possession of Burglary Tools, Felony Possession of Drug Paraphernalia, Careless and Imprudent Driving, and No Seatbelt.

Passenger, Haley Ann Nivens, 18 year old female of Fairview, was arrested for Tampering 1st Degree.
MSHP is submitting these charges to the Barry County Prosecutor for review. They were both transported to the Barry County Jail by MSHP.

A third passenger, Jonathan Chrisco, 19 year old male of Granby, was transported via ambulance due to crash related injuries. Charges for him have been submitted to Barry County Prosecutor's Office for Tampering 1st Degree.

Deputies continued to further investigate this incident. During the investigation, they developed information that led them to a rural county road near Stella.

With the assistance of the Missouri State Highway Patrol and the US Marshal’s Task Force, Jaeden Millikin, a 20 year old male of Stella was arrested for warrants of Armed Criminal Action, Burglary 2nd Degree, and Assault 2nd Degree.

During his arrest, a motorcycle was found in his possession that had been reported stolen in Jasper County. Millikin was also arrested for Receiving Stolen Property and charges have been submitted to the Newton County Prosecutor’s Office for review.

Wesley Frazier, 35 year old male, of Stella, was also contacted during this investigation. He was arrested on 4, failure to appear traffic warrants and two probation violation warrants for Tampering 1st Degree and Possession of narcotics.

This incident is another great example of how the Newton County Sheriff’s Office and area law enforcement work together to keep our communities safe.

“The criminals in our area don’t care about jurisdictional boundaries, and I am thankful that we have such great working relationships with our surrounding counties, municipalities, Missouri State Highway Patrol, and the US Marshals Task Force, that we were able to bring these folks to justice.”

The Newton County Sheriff’s Office is committed to removing illegal narcotics from our community. If anyone has any information about illegal narcotics activity, we ask that you contact the Newton County Sheriff’s Office at 417-451-8000 and ask to speak to a deputy.