South Dakota Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Nebraska and Iowa Bank Robberies

A man who robbed two banks was sentenced December 12, 2012, to 10 years in federal prison.

Karlis Ray Baisden, 25, from Vermillion, South Dakota, received the prison term after a June 23, 2011 guilty plea to bank robbery in Iowa and a December 28, 2011 guilty plea to bank robbery in Nebraska.

At the guilty pleas, Baisden admitted that, on December 14, 2010, he robbed the Cedar Security Bank in Fordyce, Nebraska. Baisden got away with approximately $19,000. On April 6, 2011, a search warrant was executed at Baisden’s residence, a mobile home located in Vermillion, South Dakota. Among the things found and seized from Baisden’s bedroom were: black watchcap-style hats, a dark blue or black “hoodie” jacket, dark jeans, and a neoprene ski mask. Each of these items closely matched items worn by the Fordyce robber. Also during the search of Baisden’s residence, law enforcement seized letters written by Baisden wherein he admitted to robbing the bank in Fordyce, Nebraska and the intent to rob a bank in Lawton, Iowa.

In relation to the Iowa bank robbery, Baisden admitted that, as the manager of the First Trust and Savings Bank in Lawton, Iowa, was opening up the bank for the day on April 6, 2011, he pointed a gun at her and told her he was there to rob the bank. Baisden further admitted that while the manager was in the vault, a customer pulled up to the drive-through teller window, causing Baisden to flee in a vehicle he had stolen earlier in April from Vermillion, South Dakota. Baisden was later apprehended by police after a short pursuit.

Baisden was sentenced in Sioux City by United States District Court Judge Mark W. Bennett. Baisden was sentenced to 120 months’ imprisonment. A special assessment of $400 was imposed, and he was ordered to make $19,000 in restitution. He must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.

Baisden is being held in the United States Marshals custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.

The case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office and investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Woodbury County Sheriff’s Office, the Cedar County (Nebraska) Sheriff’s Office, the Sioux City Police Department, and the Vermillion (South Dakota) Police Department.