Three Alleged Bank Robbers from Macon, Missouri Deported from Mexico Last Week Indicted by Federal Grand Jury in Waco
| U.S. Attorney’s Office September 13, 2011 |
United States Attorney John E. Murphy and FBI Special Agent in Charge Cory B. Nelson announced the return of a federal grand jury indictment charging three Macon, Missouri residents in connection with a series of bank robberies.
A five-count indictment, returned this afternoon by a federal grand jury seated in Waco, charges 25-year-old Jeffrey Brent Heckman, 23-year-old Jacob Thomas Norris, and 23-year-old Alexia Quentasha Baker with one count each of conspiracy to commit bank robbery and bank robbery. In addition Norris and Baker are charged with two counts and one count, respectively, of accessory after the fact. The indictment alleges that from May 18, 2011, until September 5, 2011, the trio conspired to commit the following bank robberies, then flee to Mexico to avoid capture:
- July 8, 2011—Merchant’s & Farmer’s Bank, 4000 Rangeline Street, Columbia, MO; and,
- July 11, 2011—Texell Credit Union, 3314 South 31st Street, Temple, TX;
Court documents further allege that Norris and Baker, knowing that a bank robbery had been committed, rented hotel rooms in Georgetown, San Antonio, and Laredo, and purchased $3,500 in money cards, clothing, and a backpack to facilitate their escape to Mexico.
On September 5, 2011, the defendants were arrested by authorities in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. The following day, Mexican immigration officials deported them to the United States. All three remain in federal custody after having their identity hearing last week in federal court in Houston. They are awaiting transfer to the Waco division of the Western District of Texas. An initial appearance before United States Magistrate Judge Jeffrey C. Manske has yet to be scheduled.
This case was investigated by agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation in the San Antonio, Kansas City, and St. Louis Divisions, along with the Temple (Texas) Police Department and local authorities in Missouri.
An indictment is merely a charge and should not be considered as evidence of guilt. The defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.