Bank teller says robber’s voice ‘haunts’ her when she recalls him tapping gun on counter

CEDAR RAPIDS — A Cedar Rapids Bank & Trust teller said Tuesday she was sick to her stomach and “shaking so badly” as an Iowa City man “tapped his gun on the counter,” ordering her to open the cash drawer last year.

“I didn’t know if I could keep it together to do what he was demanding,” Denise Takes wrote in an impact statement read by a victim liaison with the Linn County Attorney’s Office during the sentencing of Andrew Philip Derr, 22. “I will never forget the voice he used as I faced his gun. His voice still haunts me to this day.”

She said it was one of the most “horrific” days of her life. She didn’t know if she would see her husband and three children again.

Ron Maxa, bank vice president and security officer, said he wasn’t at the Council Street bank branch on Jan. 3, 2024 but was there later to console his coworkers and “innocent” clients who were present when Derr robbed the bank.

“That morning, he not only stole money from the bank, he terrorized and forever traumatized our people,” Maxa said in his statement.

Maxa said he empathizes with people dealing with mental health struggles but it “unfortunately,” doesn’t excuse what Derr did that day. Nor does it take away from the punishment “this crime deserves.”

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“For the few brave women that directly endured the terror that morning, they must deal with that trauma for a lifetime,” he said. “For those like me who were not directly involved but helped pick up the pieces, we are forever impacted as well. This is something we will live with forever.”

Sixth Judicial District Judge Mark Fisher followed the plea agreement and sentenced Derr to 10 years each for the two convictions of second-degree robbery. He ran the sentences consecutively for a total of 20 years and Derr must serve a mandatory minimum of 10 years before being eligible for parole.

Fisher also ran the 20 years concurrently to any federal conviction, also as part of the plea agreement. Derr also was indicted in January 2024 on federal charges for other area robberies and money laundering of the illegal proceeds, including the money he stole from Cedar Rapids Bank & Trust on Jan. 3.

He faces two charges of interference of commerce by robbery and seven charges of money laundering in U.S. District Court.

Fisher also ordered Derr to pay $16,705 in victim restitution for stolen bank funds.

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Derr, during sentencing, apologized to the bank tellers, other bank officials and customers of the bank. He also apologized to their families and friends for any harm he caused.

After he started crying at one point, his lawyer read the rest of his statement. In that portion, Derr said he was “desperate” at the time he committed the robbery because he had received an eviction notice and instead, of it being a “wake-up call” for him, he let his “inflated” ego and fantasies get the best of him.

According to court documents, video surveillance evidence showed Derr jumping over the counter and pointing a firearm at two tellers while demanding money.

The tellers gave him $16,705 in cash, including marked “bait” money with serial numbers recorded by the bank, according to a criminal complaint. The tellers put the money in a “distinct gray backpack” with black accents and a rubber handle.

Cedar Rapids police and FBI agents obtained video surveillance from July 2023 when Derr entered the bank to open an account, and his physical description matched that of the robbery suspect.

Derr’s vehicle — a Chevrolet Spark — was captured on a police squad car’s license plate reader when an officer responded to the robbery, the complaint stated.

Police also had video showing Derr’s vehicle in a nearby parking lot before the robbery. The vehicle was tracked through Cedar Rapids to Interstate 380 and then driving to Iowa City, where Derr lived.

Investigators obtained a search warrant for Derr’s apartment and found his wallet, which contained two bank deposit receipts for a bank in Maryland on Jan. 5 and 6, 2024. A receipt from Chicago O’Hare International Airport on Jan. 8 and a United Airlines baggage claim slip also were found in the wallet.

The deposited money recovered by police included 24 $20 bills of bait money, according to the complaint. Money found during the search of Derr’s apartment included 37 $2 bills, which was the exact number of $2 bills taken during the robbery.

Derr was arrested in New Orleans in January and extradited back to Linn County on the robbery charges.

In the federal indictment, Derr is accused of robbing a Casey’s store in Robins on Dec. 27, 2023, and a Kum & Go on Four Oaks Drive SW in Cedar Rapids on Jan. 1, 2024. He hasn’t been arraigned at this time.

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