Serial Bank Robber Pleads Guilty to Multiple Holdups
Admits Stealing Total of More Than $110,000 in 31 Bank Robberies
| U.S. Attorney’s Office May 06, 2013 |
MINNEAPOLIS—Earlier today in federal court in St. Paul, a 49-year-old Minneapolis man previously dubbed by law enforcement as “the man-in-black bank robber” pleaded guilty to five bank robberies that occurred in Minnesota between March 9, 2011 and January 3, 2012. In entering his plea, Mark Edward Wetsch also admitted responsibility for 25 additional bank robberies that occurred in 2011. Previously, on April 22, 2013, he pleaded guilty to one count of armed bank robbery, which occurred on January 3, 2012, in Brewster, Minnesota. He entered his plea today before United States District Court Judge Susan Richard Nelson.
Pursuant to a plea agreement, Wetsch pled guilty to robbing five banks, in each case admitting that he wore a black mask and brandished a firearm believed to be real. Wetsch stole $9,350 from the First National Bank in Hastings on December 27, 2011; $3,634 from the Wells Federal Bank in St. Peter on December 22, 2011; $3,801 from the Premier Bank in Albertville on November 9, 2011; $9,445 from the Merchants Bank in Hampton on May 13, 2011; and $3,050 from the United Educators Credit Union in Eden Prairie on April 26, 2011. In addition to the bank robberies to which Wetsch pled guilty, Wetsch admitted taking a total of more than $110,000 in the 31 bank robberies that he committed in 2011.
Those additional robberies include the following:
| Date of Robbery | Bank | Amount Stolen |
|---|---|---|
| December 29, 2011 | Glenwood State Bank of Alexandria | $3,200 |
| December 20, 2011 | Franklin Bank of Minneapolis | $2,350 |
| December 14, 2011 | M&I Bank of St. Paul |
$1,645 |
| December 7, 2011 | Premier Bank of Bloomington |
$850 |
| December 5, 2011 | U.S. Bank of Hopkins |
$3,106 |
| November 30, 2011 | Central Bank of Minneapolis |
$803 |
| November 22, 2011 | Bremer Bank of Minneapolis |
$2,907 |
| November 13, 2011 | TCF Bank of Arden Hills |
$4,900 |
| November 9, 2011 | Richfield Bloomington Credit Union | attempted robbery |
| November 4, 2011 | First National Bank of Lakes, Richfield | $8,823 |
| November 1, 2011 | Paragon Bank of Shakopee | $1,444 |
| October 22, 2011 | Prior Lake State Bank, Prior Lake | $7,200 |
| June 13, 2011 | First National Bank of Minnesota of Gaylord | $6,946 |
| June 3, 2011 | Sherburne State Bank, Clear Lake | $3,000 |
| April 26, 2011 | Wells Fargo Bank, Faribault | $2,225 |
| April 26, 2011 | Richfield Bloomington Credit Union | attempted robbery |
| April 14, 2011 | U.S. Federal Credit Union of Northfield | $5,280 |
| April 11, 2011 | Sterling State Bank of Savage | $1,885 |
| March 9, 2011 | Klein Bank of Cologne | $11,400 |
| March 7, 2011 | Bremer Bank of Minneapolis | $2,030 |
| February 17, 2011 | First National Bank of Orono | $4,000 |
| February 10, 2011 | United Educators Credit Union of Columbia Heights | $1,500 |
| February 9, 2011 | U.S. Bank of St. Paul | $1,000 |
| February 4, 2011 | Central Bank of Minneapolis | $1,056 |
| January 11, 2011 | Bremer Bank of Minneapolis | $6,000 |
Wetsch remains in custody. Pursuant to the plea agreement, the government is seeking a prison sentence of 14 years. Since the federal criminal justice system does not have parole, defendants serve virtually their entire sentences behind bars. Judge Nelson will determine Wetsch’s actual sentence at a future hearing, not yet scheduled.
This case is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the police departments of Alexandria, Bloomington, Columbia Heights, Eden Prairie, Faribault, Gaylord, Hastings, Hopkins, Minneapolis, Northfield, Orono, Prior Lake, Richfield, Savage, St. Paul, St. Peter, and Shakopee; and the sheriff offices of Carver, Dakota, Hennepin, Ramsey, Nicollet, Nobles, Sibley, and Wright Counties, with assistance from the Minnesota State Patrol. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Deidre Y. Aanstad and Kevin S. Ueland.