Anderson man pleads guilty to bank robbery

(From the U. S. Attorney for the Western District of Missouri)

An Anderson, Mo., man pleaded guilty in federal court today to robbing the Arvest Bank in Anderson.

Perry D. Abercrombie, 58, of Anderson, pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge David P. Rush to the charge contained in a June 16, 2015, federal indictment.

By pleading guilty today, Abercrombie admitted to robbing Arvest Bank, 607 N. Highway 71, Anderson, on May 18, 2015.

According to court documents, Abercrombie passed a handwritten note to a bank teller, indicating that he was robbing the bank and had a weapon. The teller retrieved money from her drawer and placed the money on the counter. Abercrombie took the money and the note and put them in his pocket, then left the bank.

A Missouri Highway Patrol trooper notified deputies from the McDonald County Sheriff’s Department that he had seen a pickup in the vicinity of the bank earlier that day. The trooper thought the pickup was suspicious and requested registration information for the vehicle to ensure there were no alerts for the driver or the vehicle. Deputies identified Abercrombie as the vehicle’s owner and retrieved his information, including a photograph. They showed Abercrombie’s driver’s license photo to bank employees, who said he resembled the man who had robbed the bank.

After identifying Abercrombie as a suspect in the bank robbery, a deputy drove to Abercrombie’s residence. After a short time, Abercrombie arrived at the residence. He was questioned by law enforcement officers and eventually admitted that he robbed the bank. He showed officers a cash box in his bedroom where he had put the money stolen from the bank.

Under federal statutes, Abercrombie is subject to a sentence of up to 20 years in federal prison without parole, plus a fine up to $250,000 and an order of restitution. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick Carney. It was investigated by the McDonald County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department and the FBI.