Police caught a man with his pockets stuffed full with allegedly stolen money, just 50 minutes after he was released from custody Wednesday.
Karsten Hardeman, 20, from Dayton, Ohio, was found sitting by the Wentzville, Missouri, police station with multiple $100 bills, shortly after a nearby credit union reported a robbery, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported.
Read more: Missouri police lieutenant under investigation for tweets bashing homeless, blaming gang violence on South losing Civil War
Hardeman had been released from the police station lock-up less than an hour before he was found with the cash, after his arrest and detention for an alleged misdemeanor drug offence.
Hardeman is thought to have taken part in a string of suspicious events Wednesday, according to local station KSDK. He allegedly became involved in a ruckus at a towing company after his vehicle was hauled away due to an arrest. Police held Hardeman for drugs found during the disturbance.
A large amount of money discovered during the course of events led police to investigate Hardeman further. Officers secured a warrant to search his vehicle, which they found to contain two masks, a cell phone and a computer, KSDK reported.
Shortly after his release on the drugs charge, 1st Financial Credit Union at 1232 Wentzville Parkway reported a robbery to police. According to KSDK, a suspect entered the business and asked for $50,000 in cash before leaving the scene.
A police officer ran into Hardeman on his way to investigate the incident on foot, as the credit union is close by the police station, the Post-Dispatch reported. Bills fell from Hardeman's pockets as the officer asked to see his hands. The suspect was sitting on a parking lot curb at the police station.
"I have no idea what he was thinking or why he decided that would be a good place to go," Officer Jacob Schmidt told the St Louis Post-Dispatch.
Officials charged Hardeman with first degree robbery and stealing from a financial institution Thursday. Intelligence information revealed he was allegedly linked to other robberies in Kansas and Texas.
According to KSDK, Hardeman—who is being held on a $100,000 cash-only bond—has been moved to the St. Charles County Department of Corrections.
Official statistics reveal some 73 reported bank robberies in Missouri in 2017. Total reported robberies increased between 2014 and 2017, from 5,590 to 6,347, according to the Missouri State Highway Patrol's Statistical Analysis Center.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Katherine Hignett is a reporter based in London. She currently covers current affairs, health and science. Prior to joining Newsweek ... Read more
To read how Newsweek uses AI as a newsroom tool, Click here.
