Troy Kokomo Joe’s employee turned grinch, gambled away someone else’s money

By Charles Bolinger

Editor • Just two days before Christmas last year, Troy Ofc. Zach Dellamano was dispatched to Kokomo Joe’s at 105 South Main Street, in reference to manager Chrissie M. Albers and owner Jessica R. Johnson, who reported a theft of more than $500 from employee Stacey M. Barkley, of Caseyville.

Albers told Dellamano that on Dec. 22, around noon, she noticed a sealed envelope that contained money was missing from shelves above the bar. Albers said Ashley A. Sexton left the funds in the envelope, believed to be $192, for the prior business owners on Dec. 1. Sexton was a former employee and she left the money behind that she owned to the former owners for paying her wages in advance.

Albers told police that Barkely contacted her on Dec. 22, too, saying she had problems with a payout on one of the J&J Gaming slot machines for $25. Albers contacted J&J Gamin and was advised there were no such payouts at any of their machines at that location. Albers was put in contact with the company’s gaming director of security, Kevin Willis, who reviewed video footage for a possible discrepancy.

Willis later called Albers back about the footage and he told her that it appeared Barkley was taking funds from the cash register behind the bar and from a cash bag located near the envelope above the bar. Willis said he believed Barkley appeared to use that money to make transactions on the slot machine located closest to the east front entrance. Barkley was also believed to be shown tampering with the envelope.

Albers and Johnson confronted Barkley about the envelope but she told them she accidentally retrieved it with other paperwork. Barkley returned the envelope. The manager and owner said ‘Rick’ was handwritten on the original envelope but the writing on the envelope Barkley returned was different. Johnson said she photographed the original envelope before the alleged theft and upon its return. She showed Dellamano the photographs and there were obvious differences in the handwriting. Johnson said the envelope had $140 in it.

Johnson decided to terminate Barkley’s employment and she wanted to charge the woman with Theft over $500.

She gathered the video surveillance footage and a spreadsheet tracking the aforementioned slot machine’s activity, which she sent Dellamano via email. He watched the video and made the following observations:

• At 12:34 p.m., on Dec. 21, Barkley allegedly took $20 from the register and deposited it in the slot machine
• At 12:42 p.m. she retrieved the cash bag and envelope from the area above the bar and appeared to tamper with the envelope after inspecting it. She then returned the envelope.
• Barkley then closely examined the U.S. currency in the bag. She then zipped the bag closed and proceeded to replace it above the bar with her right hand closed on the bar top
• She eventually walked back to the machine with her right hand still closed and held against her abdomen. Her left hand appeared to awkwardly receive the money from her awkwardly placed right hand and arm, which she then put into the slot machine – $15 at 12:44 p.m.
• At 12:53 p.m., she put $20 into the machine
• At 12:57 p.m., she put $20 into the machine
• At 01:01 p.m., she put another $20 in
• At 01:03 p.m., she put another $20 in
• At 01:05 p.m., she put $30 in
• At 01:27 p.m., she put another $30 in
• At 01:30 p.m., she put $25 in
• At 01:32 p.m., she put $20 in
• At 01:34 p.m., she put $25 in
• At 01:36 p.m., she put $70 in
• At 01:40 p.m., she put $30 in
• At 01:44 p.m., she put $25 in
• At 01:52 p.m., she put $20 in
• At 02:20 p.m., she put $18 in
• At 02:23 p.m., she put $7 in
• At 02:28 p.m., she put $140 in
• At 02:36 p.m., she put $0 in
• At 02:48 p.m., she put $40 in
• At 02:53 p.m., she put $10 in 
• At 02:54 p.m., she put $25 in

The total was $630 between 12:34 and 02:58 p.m. Dellamano called the phone number Barkley provided on her application dated Nov. 11, 2025 on Dec. 27 and Dec. 28 but no one answered. The voicemail instructed callers to leave a message for “Stacey,” with a female voice saying the word. 

Checking the Law Enforcement Agencies Database System (LEADS) computer inquiry showed a prior retail theft on Oct. 29, 2018 in Madison County, along with multiple, other theft-related charges. Dellamano forwarded a felony prosecution request charging Barkley with theft over $500 to the investigators within the Troy Police Department.

Warrants for Barkley were issued on Feb. 6 for theft between $500 and $10,000, a Class 3 Felony. She was arrested and charged on Feb. 7 at 04:25 p.m.