Hunter
01/10/25
An Iowa City man has pleaded guilty to robbing a Cedar Rapids bank and faces up to 20 years in prison.
A criminal complaint indicates 22-year-old Andrew Derr was seen on surveillance video jumping over the counter and robbing two tellers at the Council Street Northeast branch of Cedar Rapids Bank and Trust on January 3rd of last year.
The tellers reportedly handed Derr over $16,000 in cash, which included bait money with serial numbers. Derr put the money in a grey backpack that he allegedly was carrying back in July 2023 when he opened an account at the branch.
Authorities used traffic surveillance to track Derr driving from a nearby parking lot back to Iowa City, and were able to identify his vehicle using a License Plate Reader.
A search of Derr’s apartment allegedly found receipts for bank deposits in Westminster Maryland and a baggage claim slip from O’Hare International Airport five days after the robbery. They also found the same number of $2 bills that were taken during the robbery.
Derr faced up to 50 years in prison on two counts of first degree robbery; he pleaded guilty Thursday to two lesser charges of second-degree burglary. He faces up to 20 years on both charges and must serve a mandatory 10 years before being eligible for parole. His sentencing is March 11 in Linn County District Court.
Previous to the bank robbery, Derr was arrested in Iowa City for two separate incidents. He was charged in December 2023 for Obstruction of emergency Communications after reportedly calling 9-1-1 multiple times and asking a Johnson County dispatcher out on a date. That same month, he reportedly fell down in front of the Airliner in downtown Iowa City, then ran down the middle of Clinton Street, stopped traffic, and laid himself on the hood of a passing car. When he saw University of Iowa Police arriving, he allegedly lunged at an officer with both hands. He was charged with Public Intoxication and Assault on Persons in Certain Occupations.
Derr was fined $105 for the 911 incident; the other charges were dismissed in August.