Two men sentenced to federal prison after stealing money from a Kentucky ATM

Christopher Leach
·2 min read
3

Two men from Houston were sentenced to federal prison Wednesday for stealing cash from an ATM in Paducah, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

Otis Gibson, 24, pleaded guilty bank larceny and interstate transportation of stolen funds, according to the DOJ. He was sentenced to three years and two months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. He was involved in other ATM thefts in other states, prosecutors said.

Eric Rhodes, 25, pleaded guilty to the same charges as Gibson and was sentenced to one year and one day in prison. He faces two years of supervised release after his prison time, the DOJ said.

Gibson and Rhodes conspired with others to break into an ATM at a BB&T Bank on US 60 near the Kentucky Oaks Mall in Paducah in June 2020, according to court documents. The other conspirators in the theft weren’t named in court documents. The bank is now a Truist Bank.

How investigators found suspects in ATM theft

Gibson, Rhodes and others in the group used a stolen F-250 truck, chain and crowbars to break into the ATM and steal $158,127, according to court documents. The ATM was destroyed.

The crowbars used in the incident were left at the scene. Court documents say one of the crowbars had an item number and that number was tracked to a nearby Lowe’s. The crowbar was purchased from that store by Rhodes the day before the theft. Surveillance footage captured Rhodes purchasing the crowbar.

Rhodes was arrested shortly after another ATM theft attempt in Evandale, Ohio, about two months after the Paducah ATM theft. Court documents say Rhodes was acting as a lookout during that theft, which featured the same scheme used to rob the ATM in Paducah.

Gibson was arrested after his DNA was found on clothing abandoned after the Paducah robbery, according to court documents. Clothes, shoes, gloves and the truck used in the theft were recovered.

Gibson’s DNA was found on clothing recovered with the abandoned tools, according to court documents.

Gibson and Rhodes were ordered to pay $158,127 in restitution, according to the DOJ.

Gibson also pleaded guilty to a second count of bank larceny for his role in an ATM theft in St. Louis in January 2020, according to court documents. Gibson was ordered to pay an additional $98,748 in restitution for the St. Louis case.