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Bank Robber Sentenced to 5 Years in Federal Prison
In a shocking turn of events, a Memphis, Tenn., man was sentenced to five years in federal prison without parole for robbing a bank in Thayer, Mo.
Bobby Laughton Yates, 26, of Memphis, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge M. Douglas Harpool on October 11, 2016 for the crime, which took place on April 22, 2015.
Yates pleaded guilty to bank robbery on March 16, 2016 and was ordered to pay $2,325 in restitution. The money was stolen from the Great Southern Bank located at 323 E. Walnut St., Thayer, Mo.
According to court documents, Yates entered the bank on April 22, 2015, and asked for a deposit slip. A teller directed him to a kiosk, where he wrote out a note on a withdrawal slip. Yates presented the slip and a plastic bag to the teller, who noted that Yates kept his hand in his left sweater pocket, where she observed a bulge that appeared to be a gun.
Yates instructed the teller to give him the money from all the drawers, but the teller only had access to her own. She placed all the bills in her drawer into the bag and handed it to Yates. As he was leaving, he ran into the door jam and dropped what appeared to be a handgun. The broken piece was later determined to be part of an Airsoft gun.
Yates was later arrested for robbing the Patriot Bank in Millington, Tenn., and has pleaded guilty to that bank robbery in a separate case.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ami Harshad Miller. It was investigated by the Thayer, Mo., Police Department, the Missouri State Highway Patrol and the FBI.
Key Facts
- State: Missouri
- Category: Violent Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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