Local man convicted for robbing Community Savings Bank last year

CEDAR RAPIDS – A 43-year-old man was found guilty by a jury Thursday of robbing a Community Savings Bank of $6,900 last year and faces up to 25 years in prison.

The Linn County jury convicted Randy Copenhaver, of Cedar Rapids, of two counts of second-degree robbery and one count of second-degree theft after only three hours of deliberations following the three day trial.

Sentencing is set 11 a.m. Sept. 23.

Copenhaver handed a note to two different tellers at Community Savings Bank, 3414 Mount Vernon Road SE, Feb. 11, 2010 stating it was a robbery and to not push any buttons, according to trial testimony. He was arrested the next day after police reviewed the surveillance tapes showing the parking lot and the suspected getaway car – a red Chevrolet Tahoe.

Linn County Attorney Jerry Vander Sanden said “excellent police work” led to Copenhaver's conviction. The suspect was wearing a stocking face mask to hide his face, so the officers started a search for the Tahoe in the area and they decided to check nearby car dealerships.

Police found a matching Tahoe at Vernon Heights Auto about one mile east of the bank and it had just come back from a test drive, according to testimony. The owner still had a copy of the person's driver's license which identified Copenhaver.

The defense argued it wasn't a robbery because there was no physical contact with the tellers and no weapon was used. The defense also argued the proof of identity wasn't conclusive.