BAY CITY, MI -- A self-described "sex toy bandit" has temporarily given up his freedom by failing to appear for a court hearing.

William J. Cornelius Jr., 25, was scheduled to appear before Bay County District Judge Timothy J. Kelly the morning of Monday, Feb. 22, to accept or reject a plea offer. He didn't show up, however, prompting Kelly to issue a bench warrant for his arrest.

The next day, Cornelius turned himself in to authorities. Though Kelly continued his personal recognizance bond, Cornelius was still lodged in the Bay County Jail without bond on a Circuit Court probation violation charge, pending his next court appearance.

Cornelius is now to accept or reject the plea offer at 8:30 a.m. on Monday, Feb. 29. The offer states that if Cornelius pleads guilty to third-degree retail fraud -- the only charge he faces -- the prosecution will recommend his jail term be capped at 14 days.

His 20-year-old fiancee, Sheri C. Moore, is also charged with third-degree retail fraud, a 93-day misdemeanor, stemming from an incident that happened Wednesday, Dec. 30. The couple's evening began with them visiting the Walmart at 3921 Wilder Road in Bangor Township. Cornelius bought an engagement ring for $29.62, then asked a customer service worker to read a proposal note over the public address system, asking Moore to marry him, according to police reports.

Before leaving Walmart, Moore allegedly stole a pair of gold earrings and a silver necklace with a star pendant, police reports indicate.

The couple then went to Spencer's Gifts inside the Bay City Mall at 4101 E. Wilder Road, where Bay County sheriff's deputies allege they stole a watch, an edible thong, a sex toy, panties and sex candy valued at $80.93, police reports show. They fled the store before deputies' arrival.

Deputies found Moore walking between Bob Evans and Taco Bell, followed by a Spencer's employee. Deputies found Cornelius in the mall's food court, asleep at a table with the laces of his shoes between his fingers, records show. They found the purloined Spencer's items on him, records show.

At the Bay County Jail, the woman denied having been the one to steal the jewelry found on her, while also adding she would not snitch on Cornelius. She later changed her mind to say Cornelius was the culprit, police records show.

Cornelius told deputies he took the jewelry and the items from Spencer's, as he was feeling brash as he had been given Tramadol, a narcotic-like pain reliever, in a recent hospital visit, court records show.

Cornelius and Moore spent their first New Year's Eve as an engaged couple in the Bay County Jail before posting bond.

After news of their story went viral, the couple tried capitalizing on it by starting a GoFundMe.com page on Jan. 9, seeking $10,000 to pay for their wedding. On the page, they proclaimed themselves "the sex toy bandits." GoFundMe removed the account the following afternoon, before the couple raised even $1.

Cornelius was on probation at the time of the thefts, having been sentenced by a Bay County judge in November 2014 to three years on a conviction of ethnic intimidation. In August 2014, Cornelius and cousin Joshua M. Christe were drinking on the porch of their Bay City home when they attacked three black men who were walking by, court records show.

Cornelius is to appear before Circuit Judge Harry P. Gill on Thursday, March 3, for arraignment on his probation violation charge. He is then to have a hearing on Tuesday, March 8.

Moore is to accept or reject a plea offer before District Judge Dawn A. Klida at 1 p.m. on Thursday, March 3.