SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- A Greene County jury convicted a man from Springfield for breaking into a home and robbing a woman. Christopher Yaeger, 38, faces a prison sentence between 10 and 30 years (life) for first-degree robbery.
Investigators say Yaeger broke into a home in Springfield early on Jan. 21, 2012, and assaulted and robbed the resident while threatening her with a machete. Prosecuting Attorney Dan Patterson says Yaeger will have to serve at least 85 percent of his sentence before being eligible for parole because Missouri law deems first-degree robbery to be a dangerous crime, and Yaeger is a prior offender.
The jury reached its verdict on Wednesday after hearing testimony and attorneys’ statements on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday morning. Circuit Judge Calvin Holden scheduled Yaeger’s sentencing for April 5.
Yaeger pleaded guilty to several crimes, on several separate cases, in 2009, including theft, tampering with a motor vehicle, and burglary. He received several concurrent sentences, the longest of which was six years in prison. In 2001, he pleaded guilty to burglary and received a three-year prison sentence. He also has other convictions on his record, including assault, possession of drug paraphernalia and resisting arrest, for which he served time in the Greene County jail.
