Infamous Chiefs superfan 'ChiefsAholic' charged for string of robberies. 3 were in Iowa.

Noelle Alviz-Gransee, Des Moines Register
Updated ·3 min read
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A Kansas City Chiefs superfan known on Twitter as @ChiefsAholic was charged in federal court for a string of robberies — including three in Iowa where he allegedly stole nearly $400,000.

Xaviar Michael Babudar, 28, of Overland Park, Kansas, was charged in May with one count of bank theft and one count of transporting stolen property across state lines. The charges were made public Monday after Babudar was arrested July 7 in Lincoln, California, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney's Office, Western District of Missouri.

ChiefsAholic was one of the most famous fans in Chiefs Kingdom, known for attending games in a wolf suit and traveling with the team. He accumulated more than 40,000 followers on Twitter with stories of placing large bets on the Chiefs and portrayed himself as young and successful, according to an ESPN article.

Yet there was more to the story. On Dec. 16, 2022, Babudar was charged in Oklahoma with one count of bank theft and one count of transporting stolen property across state lines after allegedly robbing the Tulsa Teachers Federal Credit Union. He was released on bond in February but removed his ankle monitor and fled a month later.

Once charges were filed, the FBI began reviewing bank records, casino records, cell phone location records and unsolved bank robberies "to determine the breadth and scope of additional potential criminal activities," the release said.

According to the most recent criminal complaint, Babudar allegedly traveled last year through the Midwest and committed robberies at various banks and credit unions. He then allegedly laundered the money through area casinos and bank accounts, prosecutors say.

One of the states he is suspected of bank theft is Iowa, where he allegedly took $70,000 from Great Western Bank in Clive on March 2, 2022. He also is accused of robbing the First Class Credit Union in West Des Moines of $303,845 on July 13, 2022 and the First Interstate Bank in Clive of $25,000 on Nov. 30, 2022.

Xaviar Babudar is accused of robbing four banks in Iowa as part of a larger crime spree. He allegedly laundered the money he stole through casinos.
Xaviar Babudar is accused of robbing four banks in Iowa as part of a larger crime spree. He allegedly laundered the money he stole through casinos.

Court documents allege cell phone location records put Babudar in Iowa on the days of the robberies. Investigators allege Babudar made large deposits to his bank accounts and purchased thousands of dollars in casino chips, including $131,700 over a three-day period in July, in the days after the robberies.

In total, Babudar allegedly purchased and redeemed more than $1 million in chips from various casinos in Missouri, Kansas, and Illinois between April and December 2022, according to the criminal complaint.

Investigators were unable to find "a consistent source of wages, revenue, or income from any legitimate employment" other than "occasional eBay sales" to validate the influx of money and determined he had not reported any wages in Kansas since 2018, according to the complaint.

In addition to the robberies in Iowa, prosecutors have linked Babudar to three bank robberies in Nebraska, Tennessee and Oklahoma and the attempted robberies of two credit unions in Minnesota.

Babudar faces 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine on each of the charges.

Noelle Alviz-Gransee is a breaking news reporter at the Des Moines Register. Follow her on Twitter@NoelleHannika or email her at NAlvizGransee@registermedia.com.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: KC superfan 'ChiefsAholic' charged in court for Midwest bank robberies