GPS tracker led police to bank robbery suspects

By: Melissa Hudson

Posted: Nov 21, 2016 2:02 PM EDT | Updated: Nov 21, 2016 2:41 PM EDT

Three men have been charged in federal court for the robbery of the 1st Source Bank in Osceola on November 16, according to court records.

Lamont Hawkins, David Woods and Jeffery Wilson are charged with bank robbery and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence.

Around 1:45 p.m. November 16, a 2003 Ford Explorer pulled up to the bank and three masked men entered the bank.
One of the males was armed with an assault rifle, another with a handgun.

The men pointed the guns at the tellers and ordered them to the floor while demanding money. Two men vaulted the teller counter and removed money from the drawers, according to court documents.

The men obtained $17,000 in currency. The money included a concealed dye pack and GPS tracking device.

The three men left the bank in the Explorer, which the FBI says was stolen.

Investigators reviewed bank surveillance video and obtained descriptions of the three suspects.

Police searched the area around the bank and located the stolen Explorer abandoned at a nearby apartment complex.

At 2:06 p.m., the GPS device emitted a signal from a home at 1014 McKinley in Elkhart, according to the FBI.

A dye pack and a small amount of dye stained currency was found in the back yard, according to the probable cause affidavit.

Police used a handheld device and discovered the GPS device was located inside the residence at 1014 McKinley, according to the probable cause affidavit.

Law enforcement spent 45 minutes ordering anyone in the home to exit it.

Police identified the men who exited the home as Lamont Hawkins, David Woods and Jeffrey Wilson.

Investigators obtained a search warrant for the home and located $17,000 inside the home, according to the probable cause affidavit.

A large amount of the cash was found in a backpack and another bag. Most of it was stained with dye, the FBI said.

The backpack also contained the bank's GPS tracking device and a magazine loaded with rifle ammunition, according to the probable cause affidavit.

Police said they found clothing similar to the clothing worn by the bank robbers inside the home.

A search warrant was also obtained for a white Ford Taurus parked outside the residence. Inside the vehicle police found masks and gloves and additional clothing consistent with the clothing worn by the suspects in the robber, according to the probable cause affidavit.

All three suspects denied robbing the bank.

On one of the suspect's phones, police located a photo of a stack of cash still bundled with ta bank band around it. Police said the photo was sent from Woods' phone to Wilson's phone shortly after the robbery, according to the probable cause affidavit.