Fulton Man Charged with Bank Robbery
| U.S. Attorney’s Office June 16, 2011 |
JEFFERSON CITY, MO—Beth Phillips, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a Fulton, Mo., man was charged in federal court today with robbing the Sun Security Bank in Weaubleau, Mo.
Edward Lee Cooke, 59, of Fulton, was charged in a criminal complaint filed in the U.S. District Court in Jefferson City, Mo.
Today’s criminal complaint alleges that Cooke stole $7,847 from the bank on Wednesday, June 15, 2011.
According to an affidavit filed in support of the complaint, Cooke entered Sun Security Bank, 404 E. Hwy. 54, in Weaubleau, at approximately 8:41 a.m. Cooke allegedly walked toward two employees, who were seated at a desk in the bank’s lobby, and said, “This is a robbery.” The employees were stunned and did not react quickly, the affidavit says; Cooke hit one of the employees on the back of her shoulder and said, “move it.” The employees noticed that Cooke was holding one of his hands inside his jacket, the affidavit says, and they believed that he may have been armed with a weapon.
One of the employees handed Cooke a bag with cash from two of the bank’s teller drawers, according to the affidavit. Cooke allegedly walked to the doors of the bank, said, “Have a nice day, ladies, and sorry for the inconvenience,” and left the bank.
A deputy of the Hickory County Sheriff’s Department, who was responding to a report of a suspicious vehicle when he received information about the bank robbery, saw Cooke walking out of a wooded area and ordered him to the ground at gunpoint.
Phillips cautioned that the charge contained in this complaint is simply an accusation, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charge must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Larry Miller. It was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Hickory County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department.