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With the woman's 13-year-old daughter in tow, a Detroit couple robbed and burglarized their way across the eastern half of Nebraska this week before being captured in Kearney, authorities say.
Kristie S. Workman, 40, and Gary E. Filip, 35, are in the Buffalo County Jail in connection with the robbery of a Kearney Walgreens. Workman's daughter has been turned over to the state. The couple began their journey with a stolen car in Detroit, authorities said, and more charges may be filed.
Evidence of the alleged spree surfaced Tuesday when a 23-year-old Gretna man arrived home to discover his home ransacked and more than $5,000 worth of possessions gone. Stolen were a new 12-gauge shotgun, a 42-inch Samsung flat screen TV and a piece of evidence that would prove vital to the case: a bottle of 800-milligram ibuprofen.
The pill bottle, bearing the Gretna man's name, later was found with the Detroit couple 165 miles away in Kearney, where they were arrested with a stolen car, said Sarpy County Sheriff's Office investigator Letha Feeney.
Workman and her boyfriend, Filip, are suspected of stealing the black 1999 Dodge Stratus in Detroit and driving it to Nebraska.
“They got on Interstate 80 and came this way,” Feeney said. “What they did between Michigan and here, I do not know.”
After burglarizing the Gretna home, Feeney said, they went to the Pump & Pantry convenience store in Gretna and took a DVD player and Sonoma cigarettes before leaving.
Their next stop was York, about 85 miles west, Feeney said.
They are believed to be responsible for a theft there at Black Bart's Shell Station, said York Police Chief Don Klug. An employee's wallet and cell phone were taken, he said.
The couple's trip came to a close not long after Filip is believed to have robbed a Walgreens in Kearney.
A witness spotted a man believed to be Filip pushing a cart with a blanket in it into the Walgreens. Inside, the man reportedly flashed a shotgun and demanded drugs and money. He left with cash and a powerful narcotic pain reliever, OxyContin, authorities said.
When the man left, the shotgun briefly fell out of the blanket onto the ground. The man got into a Dodge Stratus and left.
The witness, John Hanson, 47, of Kearney, notified law enforcement of the car's license plate number.
A Nebraska State Patrol trooper spotted the Stratus at the 1st Interstate Inn and held Workman and Filip until local authorities arrived. The couple were arrested, and Workman's daughter was turned over to the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services.
A shotgun was found in the car. Feeney said she did not yet know if the shotgun used in the Walgreens robbery was the weapon stolen from the Gretna home.
At a court hearing Wednesday, Filip said he has lived in Detroit all of his life. He was convicted in Nevada of possessing a stolen vehicle and spent time at the High Desert State Prison in Indian Springs, Nev.
Filip, also known as Bill Edward Phillips, was paroled in March 2008, according to the prison.
Workman told the judge she is from Arizona and had lived in Detroit for six months. She was convicted of a felony 15 or 16 years ago. Details of her criminal history were not immediately known.
Workman and her daughter told police that Filip needed drugs because he was going through withdrawal, according to court documents. He told Workman to find the first pharmacy she could. After robbing the store, he shared a fistful of OxyContin with Workman. She took the pills and drove from the scene, according to the court records.
Surveillance video inside the Walgreens shows a man who matches Filip's description.
Authorities are investigating whether the couple are tied to other crimes.
Kearney Police Capt. Byron Patterson said they most likely are.
“I think any place that you look between Detroit and Kearney, any time they needed money, gas or drugs, you're probably going to find an incident or two.”
Filip's bail was set at $750,000, and Workman's was set at $100,000.
World-Herald staff writer Andrew J. Nelson contributed to this report, which also includes material from the World-Herald News Service.
Contact the writer:
444-1022, katie.fretland@owh.com
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