Columbia Man Sentenced to Life in Prison for Bank Robberies

JEFFERSON CITY, MO—Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a Columbia, Missouri man was sentenced in federal court today for two bank robberies in Columbia.

Eddie Prince Roberts, 40, of Columbia, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Nanette K. Laughrey to life in federal prison without parole. The court also ordered Roberts to pay $4,468 in restitution.

On December 6, 2012, Roberts was found guilty at trial of two counts of bank robbery. Roberts has prior convictions for six earlier bank robberies.

Evidence introduced during the trial indicated that Roberts stole $8,260 from Landmark Bank in Columbia on May 8, 2012. During the robbery, Roberts—who had both hands in his pockets—threatened to shoot a bank employee and ordered the employee to take him to the vault. When the employee was unable to open the vault, Roberts began punching him in the face. Roberts then ran to another teller, jumped onto the counter, and took all the money she had. As he was leaving the bank, a customer tried to stop him, and Roberts punched him in the face.

Roberts’ truck was found a short time later, stuck by the river after attempting to elude the police. Officers pursued on foot; Roberts resisted arrest and fought with one of the officers. During the struggle, the officer’s firearm was discharged, and Roberts was wounded.

Evidence also indicated that Roberts stole $4,468 from Boone County National Bank in Columbia on April 23, 2012. During that robbery, Roberts ordered a teller to give him all of the money in her drawer. Roberts jumped on the counter and rifled through the teller drawers, putting money into a black trash bag. Surveillance video from nearby businesses captured images of Roberts leaving the bank in the same black Ram pickup that he used a couple of weeks later to rob Landmark Bank.

Roberts was convicted of bank robbery in Kansas in 1993 and, in a separate case in Kansas in 1993, of four bank robberies. Roberts was also convicted of bank robbery in Missouri in 2000.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Anthony P. Gonzalez. It was investigated by the FBI; the Columbia, Missouri Police Department; the Miller County, Missouri Sheriff’s Department; the Cooper County, Missouri Sheriff’s Department; the Missouri State Highway Patrol; and the Boonville, Missouri Police Department.

This news release, as well as additional information about the office of the United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, is available online at http://www.justice.gov/usao/mow/index.html.