Man pleads guilty to 4 federal charges after 3 bank robberies in less than a month

GREENFIELD -- Curtis Trotter has pleaded guilty to four federal charges filed as part of a seven-count indictment after three bank robberies in October and November in Greenfield and Wauwatosa.

Trotter has agreed to plead guilty to the below counts:


    According to federal court documents, on Oct. 11, around 3:30 p.m., Trotter robbed the Old National Bank near 27th and Edgerton in Greenfield. The documents indicate someone matching his description entered the bank and displayed a handgun. He approached a teller and said "give me your money. This is a robbery." After the crime, he fled in a dark Explorer SUV -- getting away with $7,800. He was captured by security cameras on a nearby motel getting into the Explorer with the rear window smashed out, covered with plastic. That vehicle drove across a lawn near 27th and Edgerton. The vehicle was located by police on Oct. 26 behind an address on N. 6th St. in Milwaukee. It was found to be registered to Trotter's girlfriend, who denied it belonged to her on Nov. 7. On Nov. 8, a witness identified Trotter as the suspect in the Oct. 11 bank robbery via a photo array. On Nov. 28, after his arrest for another robbery, the documents indicate Trotter denied knowledge of the Old National Bank crime.

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    On Nov. 28, around 3:30 p.m., the documents indicate a person matching Trotter's description entered the Focus Credit Union near 68th and Milwaukee Ave. in Wauwatosa -- wearing a black hoodie with the drawstring pulled tightly around his face. He stood at a teller station and said "Money! Money! Money!" When the teller moved too slowly, he pulled out a handgun. As the teller placed money in Trotter's white plastic bag, including a dye pack, Trotter said "More! More! More!" He repeated this at the next teller station -- where he got more money, before fleeing the bank. The documents indicate a teller watched the dye pack explode as the suspect walked across the parking lot. He then dropped all of the stolen money. After his arrest later that afternoon, the documents say Trotter confessed to the robbery -- a confession that was corroborated by, among other things, dye pack stains on his jacket.

    Less than an hour after the Wauwatosa robbery, Trotter is accused of robbing the TCF Bank near 76th and Forest Home in Greenfield. It happened around 4 p.m. The documents indicate Trotter was armed with a handgun and told a teller, "I am robbing you. Give me the money now." As he rested the gun on the counter, the teller gathered approximately $3,000 from his drawer. Trotter told other tellers to give him money as well, saying "hey big guy -- come over here. I'm robbing all of you. Give me all the money." A teller saw Trotter headed westbound on W. Allerton Ave. after the crime, and a Greenfield police detective saw him about two blocks from the bank. When he saw the detective, he took off running. The detective then exited his squad, armed with his firearm, and chased Trotter, yelling for him to stop. Soon, Trotter fell down and he was handcuffed. A search yielded a handgun, and a gray jacket with $7,937 inside. The documents show Trotter admitted to the robbery.

    The federal court documents show the federal charges to which Trotter has now pleaded guilty carry maximum terms of imprisonment of 25 years plus, five years of supervised release. Count 6 carries a mandatory consecutive seven years to life plus five years of supervised release. Each count carries a fine of $250,000 plus a mandatory special assessment of $100.

    The documents indicate Trotter has agreed to pay restitution of more than $7,800 to each of the three banks he's pleaded guilty to robbing.