Two Houston men sentenced for roles in Kentucky ATM theft in 2020

Two Houston men were sentenced Thursday to federal prison for their roles in a theft from a Paducah ATM.

U.S. Attorney Michael A. Bennett of the Western District of Kentucky, Special Agent in Charge Jodi Cohen of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Chief Brian Laird of the Paducah Police Department made the announcement.

According to court documents, Otis J. Gibson, 24, was sentenced to 38 months in prison, followed by 3 years of supervised release, for bank larceny and interstate transportation of stolen funds. Eric J. Rhodes, 25, was sentenced to 12 months and one day in prison, followed by 2 years of supervised release, for bank larceny and interstate transportation of stolen funds. 

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On June 10, 2020, Gibson, Rhodes, and unnamed co-conspirators stole cash from a stand-alone ATM located on Highway 60 near the Kentucky Oaks Mall in Paducah. The group used a stolen truck, chain, and pry bars to break open the ATM. Over $150,000 was stolen from the machine. They then traveled across state lines with the stolen cash. There is no parole in the federal system.

Gibson was also indicted by a federal grand jury in Missouri for his role in a January 9, 2020, ATM theft in Saint Louis. That indictment was transferred to the Western District of Kentucky. He was also sentenced Friday to a concurrent prison sentence for bank larceny charged in the Missouri indictment.

Gibson and Rhodes were ordered to pay $158,127 in restitution for bank larceny in Paducah. Gibson was ordered to pay an additional $98,748 for bank larceny in Saint Louis.

The FBI and the Paducah Police Department investigated the case.

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Assistant U.S. Attorney Raymond McGee, of the U.S. Attorney’s Paducah Branch Office, prosecuted the case.