Overland Park woman is charged in ‘large scale’ theft investigation

An Overland Park woman was charged Friday with stealing more than $100,000 in merchandise after police carted off multiple vans full of suspected stolen goods from her home.

Kelli Jo Bauer, 45, was arrested Wednesday after an investigation of several weeks by detectives with Overland Park’s organized retail crime unit.

According to the Johnson County district attorney’s office, police began investigating after they learned Bauer was allegedly selling “high-end” women’s clothing on Facebook swap-and-shop sites.

Overland Park detectives spent most of Wednesday and Thursday at her $900,000 home in the 13700 block of Horton Drive in the Links of Lionsgate development.

Numerous bags of clothing and household items were seized. A police spokesman said it probably will take several weeks for the items to be cataloged to determine their value.

Bauer is the only person charged in the case, but police said the investigation is ongoing.

Johnson County prosecutors filed a single count of theft Friday, alleging that more than $100,000 worth of merchandise was involved. The charges did not state where the merchandise allegedly was stolen.

The affidavit containing details of the investigation and evidence supporting the charges has not been made public.

Bauer made her first court appearance Friday afternoon. Scott Gyllenborg, the attorney who represented Bauer, requested a reduction of her $50,000 bond.

Magistrate Judge Dan Vokins said he had concerns about the nature of the allegations and set several conditions before reducing her bond to $20,000.

She will be required to be under house arrest with GPS monitoring and is prohibited from going into any retail establishment. He also ordered that she follow mental health recommendations, including the taking of prescribed medication.

Her next court hearing is scheduled for Thursday.

The charges are not the first time Bauer has faced theft allegations. It also was not the first time mental health concerns were raised.

In 2007, she was charged with a felony for stealing clothing and other merchandise from three stores in Overland Park within 72 hours.

She later pleaded guilty to two reduced charges of misdemeanor criminal deprivation of property and was placed on probation, according to court records.

As a condition of probation, she was required to serve seven days in jail and receive mental health treatment, the records show.

She was charged again in 2013 with stealing clothing from an Olathe retailer. She again was placed on probation after pleading guilty to a misdemeanor charge, court records show.

According to state records, Bauer operates an online retail business named My Retro Baby. It markets clothing, jewelry and other baby-related items.

Prosecutors said Friday that anyone who has done business with Bauer on Facebook or through My Retro Baby should call the district attorney’s consumer hotline at 913-715-3003.

This story was originally published April 3, 2015 at 11:10 AM with the headline "Overland Park woman is charged in ‘large scale’ theft investigation."