Bank Robbery Suspect Arrested

By Tim Schmidt, Record Editor
Posted 11/7/19

Police arrested a man four days after the Jonesburg State Bank branch in Jonesburg was robbed Nov. 14. Jonesburg Police Chief JD Sinclair said the suspect, Wade T. Sargent, was arrested by FBI agents …

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Bank Robbery Suspect Arrested

Posted

Police arrested a man four days after the Jonesburg State Bank branch in Jonesburg was robbed Nov. 14. Jonesburg Police Chief JD Sinclair said the suspect, Wade T. Sargent, was arrested by FBI agents at a residence in St. Charles County. Police allege Sargent entered the bank at approximately 3 p.m. on Nov. 14 and showed a note to a bank teller demanding money. He then fled on foot with an undisclosed amount of cash, police said. Sargent displayed a gun hidden near his belt to the teller, according to police. No one was injured in the robbery. Jonesburg State Bank is located at 110 First St. in Jonesburg. The bank also has a branch in Warrenton. Sinclair attributed the quick capture to media reports and tips from the public. "It definitely boiled down to the media getting the picture out and tips being made to my office and the FBI," Sinclair said. "The public really stepped up. We were looking for names that kept coming up and his (Sargent's) did." Sargent has been charged with first-degree robbery and armed criminal action, both felonies. He made his first court appearance Monday and is scheduled to return on Dec. 1. He is being held in the Montgomery County Jail in lieu of a $100,000 cash-only bond. Sargent is being represented by public defender Mary Joe Smith. Online court records list Sargent's address as the 200 block of East Walton in Warrenton. Sinclair, however, said Sargent's primary address is unknown since it appeared he bounced between residences. Sinclair said investigators are still trying to determine if Sargent got into a vehicle or how he managed to elude police immediately following the robbery. The Warren County Sheriff's Department K-9 team consisting of Sgt. Ed McCormick and Bronto tracked a scent approximately a quarter-mile east of the bank until losing the scent. It also remains unknown, Sinclair said, if Sargent acted alone or had an acquaintance assist him in the bank heist. The money and gun also have yet to be found, the chief said. Sinclair was appreciative of the assistance provided by the FBI and numerous other law enforcement agencies, along with residents in the normally quiet town. "The citizens pulled together," Sinclair said. "Everybody was real supportive. Everybody stayed together and kept their eyes open. Yeah, it set some people back, but people were active and on the lookout." This is the second bank robbery in the area this year. In May, the American Bank branch in Warrenton was robbed by a St. Louis man who was arrested six days later following the holdup. The armed suspect was accused of stealing approximately $25,000.


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