Man accused of bringing meth bottle into Jefferson City IHOP, causing evacuation on Thanksgiving Day
Ryan Shiner
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
A man has been charged with two felonies after he allegedly brought a combustible bottle of methamphetamine into a Jefferson City IHOP on Thanksgiving Day.
Jason Cross, 53, of Jefferson City, was charged with manufacturing a controlled substance and first-degree endangering the welfare of a child. He is being held at the Cole County Jail without bond. An arraignment was held on Monday and Cross pleaded not guilty by video from the jail. Cross also applied for a public defender.
The probable cause statement says police were called around 6:23 p.m. Thursday to the IHOP on Missouri Boulevard. A witness allegedly told police that Cross had been talking about a bomb, and police removed one person from the restaurant and then evacuated the building, the statement says.
Cross allegedly referred to having a bottle that he called a “shake and bake,” or a way to make meth “that is extremely combustible,” court documents say. Cross allegedly told police he brought the bottle of meth to the restaurant “to possibly make it safe,” the statement says.
Cross allegedly told police that “he did not think he brought a bomb into the restaurant but thought it could be,” the statement says. One of the people described as a victim was a teenager who worked at the restaurant, the statement says. The teenager and another person described as a witness told police that Cross had called the bottle a “bomb” and had been shaking it in the building, the statement says.
A counsel status hearing is scheduled for 2 p.m. Wednesday, while a preliminary hearing is set for 1:30 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 29.