Inset: William Peairs (Polk County Sheriff's Office). Background: The Bolivar Public Safety Center in Bolivar, Mo. (Google Maps).
A Missouri man avoided prison time despite literally walking into a major aspect of his legal troubles in the first place.
On Wednesday, William Peairs, 34, pleaded guilty to one count each of stealing a motor vehicle and unlawful use of a weapon, according to Polk County court records reviewed by Law&Crime.
In turn, the defendant was sentenced to a total of 11 years; seven years for the stealing charge and four years for the weapon charge.
The sentences meted out by Associate Circuit Judge Jill S. Porter, however, were ordered to run concurrently, or at the same time. Additionally, actual prison time was waived in favor of five years of probation under the terms of a plea agreement.
In summer 2025, Peairs was arrested and charged with both of the counts he pleaded guilty to as well as counts of robbery and armed criminal action, court records show.
Police say the story started further back.
In March 2025, the defendant walked into the Bolivar Police Department to deal with an eviction when an officer recognized him as matching the description of a suspect in an armed robbery that occurred a few days prior, according to court documents obtained by Springfield-based CBS affiliate KOLR and Osage Beach-based Fox affiliate KRBK, which collectively broadcast as "Ozarks First."
On Feb. 25, 2025, the victim traveled to Bolivar to meet a woman after talking to her on a dating website — or so he thought.
The victim was instructed by the user on the dating website to pull into an alley where they would be able to have some privacy. Instead, the victim was met by two men. One of those men was Peairs — who allegedly punched the catfished man in the face, police said.
After that, Peairs held the victim down in his seat by putting his arm across his chest and holding a knife to his throat, according to the charging documents. Eventually, the two men removed the victim from his own vehicle. Peairs then got into the driver's seat. The other man and a woman also hopped in and the pilfered pickup truck sped away.
Charging documents also alleged the defendant "forcibly stole a wallet and phone" from the victim while armed. Both the robbery and armed criminal action charges were dismissed under the plea deal.
Now on probation, Peairs will have to pay restitution of $9,000, obey all laws, abstain from alcohol and marijuana, have no contact with the victim, consent to all searches by law enforcement, and submit to GPS monitoring for the next five years, the plea agreement notes.