Sentencing is ahead in a Lyon County retail theft case prosecuted by the Kansas Attorney General’s Office.
On Tuesday, 32-year-old Demetrius Lamont Odom of Decader, Georgia, accepted an agreement involving guilty pleas to single counts of identity theft and criminal use of a financial card.
By state law, Odom could receive anywhere from 12 to 40 months in prison and fines of up to $200,000 if sentences are consecutive and Chief Judge Jeff Larson demands the maximums. The agreement, however, tentatively calls for probation and full restitution of nearly $12,000.
Odom was first charged in 2024 with 7 total counts, including 4 of identity theft, 2 for criminal use of a financial card and 1 for conspiracy. Attorney General Kris Kobach says Odom stole from an unlisted number of liquor stores across Kansas, including four in Emporia: Carlos Liquor, Emporia Liquor & Wine, Liquor Locker and The Liquor Store.
The Odom case was the first organized retail crime prosecution for Kobach’s office after a change in state law 2 years ago let prosecutors seek felony charges in retail crimes, including organized crime cases, instead of pursuing minor theft cases.
