Minor, Missouri Man and Charleston, Missouri Woman Plead Guilty to Armed Bank Robbery

A Minor, Missouri man and a Charleston, Missouri woman pled guilty on April 7, 2011, to a two-count indictment charging them with armed bank robbery and use of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, Stephen R. Wigginton, announced today.

Richard Anderson, age 21, of Minor, Missouri, and Holli Wrice, age 32, of Charleston, Missouri, pled guilty in United States District Court at Benton, Ill.. The violations took place on November 6, 2008, at the Capaha Bank of Tamms, Ill., which is located in Alexander County. Both Anderson and Wrice were remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals pending sentencing which is set for 10:30 a.m. for Wrice, and 11 a.m. for Anderson, on July 7, 2011, at Benton.

Anderson and Wrice admitted to the court that they entered the Capaha Bank of Tamms, Ill., each armed with handguns, which they brandished and pointed at the tellers and customers. Both admitted that Wrice told the teller, “Give me the money, (expletive),” while pointing the gun at the teller and then handed her a note which stated: “This is a robbery, I have a gun, don’t cause a scene, and no one will get hurt. I do have a Gun!!” Bank video cameras recorded the robbery and showed that Wrice picked up the note shown to the teller and attempted to put it into the bag with the money taken from the bank, but the note fell out as the bag was pulled away from the teller window. Photos taken from the bank surveillance cameras were broadcast to the public on local television stations the same night as the bank robbery and ultimately led to witnesses coming forward to identify Anderson. Those identifications were corroborated when Anderson’s fingerprints matched with those found on the demand note. Wrice’s fingerprints were also found on the note. Through analysis of surveillance videos, detectives from the Jackson County Sheriff’s office, who volunteered to assist in the investigation, were able to positively identify the types of weapons and the make of the getaway vehicle used by the robbers. The Illinois State Police then located the vehicle and through subsequent investigation the FBI was able to track the path used by the robbers both to and from the robbery through cell phone GPS information.

The bank robbery offense carries with it a maximum penalty of 25 years’ imprisonment and a fine of $250,000.00, or both. Any term of imprisonment must be followed by a term of not more than five years’ of supervised release. The use of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence offense carries with it a seven-year mandatory sentence for a first conviction and a 25-year mandatory sentence if there is a previous conviction for the offense. These sentences must be served consecutively to any other sentence imposed. Anderson faces a mandatory seven years on this count which must be served consecutively to any sentence imposed for the robbery. Because Wrice has a previous conviction for using a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, she faces a mandatory 25-year sentence which must be served consecutively to any sentence imposed for the robbery.

This investigation was conducted jointly by the FBI, the Jackson County Sheriff’s Department, and the Illinois State Police. The case is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney Michael C. Carr.