American football fan accused of bank robbery – 07/13/2023 – Sports

As the head cheerleader for the Kansas City Chiefs football team, Xavier Babudar, known to fans as the ChiefsAholic, attended nearly every game, home and away. Given the high price of football tickets, it was a luxurious lifestyle, which Babudar said he was able to support thanks to the successful warehouses he managed in the US Midwest.

But the money that financed Babudar’s trips, according to federal prosecutors, appears to have come, in part, from an illicit source. The football fan is accused of committing a series of bank robberies in at least six states over the last year, including Iowa, where he is suspected of stealing $70,000 (£336,000).

Babudar, 29, was arrested near Sacramento, California, on Friday. Federal agents charged him with a felony bank robbery and a felony of transporting stolen property across state lines, the United States Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Missouri said. This came four months after he fled indictment in Oklahoma related to a different bank robbery.

That robbery is one of seven that Babudar was accused of committing or attempting to commit between April 2022 and December 2022, according to court documents released on Monday. Prosecutors said Babudar had purchased and redeemed more than $1 million (R$4.8 million) in chips from casinos across the Midwest that appeared to be related to the stolen money. A grand jury will determine whether Babudar will be indicted on the additional charges, the statement added.

Federal prosecutors in Missouri declined to comment on the case.

In December, Babudar was accused of robbing a credit union in Tulsa, Okla., using a pistol he pointed at a teller’s face. He was released in February after a person, who was also a Kansas City Chiefs fan, agreed to pay Babudar’s $80,000 bail. A month later, police said he cut off his ankle bracelet and disappeared.

Tracy Tiernan, an attorney for Babudar in Oklahoma, said he had not contacted the suspect since then.

“I still haven’t had any communication with him other than two or three text messages asking where he is and begging him to come back,” Tiernan said.

Four months after the escape, federal agents found and arrested Babudar in California. He appeared Tuesday afternoon in the US District Court for the Eastern District of California, where a judge ordered him to remain in custody without bond until he could be transferred back to Missouri. A date for the court hearing has not yet been set, according to a spokesman for the United States District Court in Missouri.

Tulsa County Prosecutor Steve Kunzweiler thanked federal agents for finding and arresting Babudar and said he still planned to pursue prosecution in Oklahoma. After Babudar escaped from a Tulsa jail, a judge issued a warrant for his arrest and a new bond, this time set at $1 million.

“Tulsa County was the first jurisdiction to arrest and charge Babudar in December 2022,” Kunzweiler said. “My office will work closely with the United States Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Missouri to determine next steps to hold him accountable,” she added.

For years, Babudar, known for his exuberant persona and signature wolf costume, was a fixture at Kansas City Chiefs games. He was frequently featured on NFL broadcasts and had tens of thousands of followers on Twitter under the username @ChiefsAholic. The account is now managed by a different user.

But his appearance at a Tulsa jail in December and his escape pierced his image as an enterprising, affable football fan. A new narrative put forward by law enforcement and prosecutors portrayed a rootless man living in his car with a history of minor crimes such as shoplifting.

“He had a bad luck in life,” said Tiernan, referring to Babudar. “He lacked guidance from his father and struggled with homelessness. It was a terribly difficult climate for a teenager to endure.”