Springfield man sentenced for bank robbery

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

A Springfield, Mo., man was sentenced in federal court today for robbing a local bank.

Richard Lavern Neil Kuder, 26, was sentenced by U.S. Chief District Judge Beth Phillips to nine years in federal prison without parole. The court also ordered Kuder to pay $7,215 in restitution.

On July 24, 2020, Kuder pleaded guilty to one count of bank robbery. Kuder admitted that he stole $7,215 from Central Bank of the Ozarks, 2501 N. Kansas Expressway in Springfield, on June 11, 2020. Kuder presented a bank teller with a note that said, “Very sorry to do this but I need all of the money out of cash register ... This is a robbery.” The teller handed him the cash and Kuder left the bank. He was last seen running through the bank’s parking lot.

In addition to the bank’s surveillance video, numerous businesses near the bank also had surveillance photos of Kuder as he was making his approach to the bank and his getaway after the robbery. Surveillance video showed him hailing a cab, which reported taking Kuder to an apartment complex. Investigators were able to track Kuder to his own apartment complex, which was nearby, and he was identified as a resident. The manager of the apartment complex said Kuder had been behind on his rent, but on the day of the bank robbery, he paid $1,000 cash for his past due rent and his next rental payment.

Detectives contacted Kuder, who was on parole for a previous robbery conviction, and he was taken into custody.

According to court documents, Kuder has two prior felony convictions and 13 prior misdemeanor convictions, including several violent crimes. These crimes of violence have included resisting and striking a law enforcement officer, striking and strangling an unknown man on a local bus and then striking his daughter when she tried to assist her father, and using a firearm to threaten store security and another person.

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