United States Attorney
Northern District of Texas

1100 Commerce St., 3rd Fl.
Dallas, Texas 75242-1699

Telephone (214) 659-8600
Fax (214) 767-0978

Two Amarillo, Texas, Men Arrested for
October 2005 Robbery of Plains Bell Federal Credit Union

Third Man Charged Already in State Custody

United States Attorney Richard B. Roper announced that two Amarillo, Texas, men, James Edward Peacock, age 62, and David Aaron Johnson, age 22, were arrested today on charges outlined in a federal criminal complaint filed yesterday in U.S. District Court in Lubbock. The complaint charges Peacock, Johnson, and another defendant, James Glen Horton, with aggravated credit union robbery, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 2113(a), (d), and (2). Defendants Peacock and Johnson are to make their initial appearance either this afternoon or tomorrow morning before the Honorable Clinton Averitte, United States Magistrate Judge, and at that hearing the government will ask that they be detained pending trial. Horton is in state custody on unrelated charges and will make his initial appearance before the Magistrate Judge in the near future.

According to the affidavit filed with the criminal complaint, on October 19, 2005, at approximately 9:20 a.m., two individuals, David Aaron Johnson and James Glen Horton, entered the Plains Bell Federal Credit Union located at 2545 74th Street in Lubbock. Johnson pointed a firearm at a teller and said “this is a robbery” while Horton leaped over the teller counter, telling another teller to take him to the vault. Johnson and Horton took approximately $15,723 in the robbery.

The affidavit goes on to state that a confidential informant stated that Peacock rented a motel room in Lubbock about one week prior to the robbery to conduct surveillance on the Alliance Federal Credit Union for purposes of planning a robbery there. Records obtained from the motel confirm that Peacock did check into that motel on October 12 and checked out on October 14, 2005, and then again checked into the motel on October 18 and checked out on October 19, 2005, the date of the robbery. The confidential informant advised that Horton stole a maroon 1984 Pontiac Grand Am to use during the robbery and police reports indicate that a maroon Pontiac Grand Am, which was reported stolen on October 12, 2005, was used in the robbery.

U.S. Attorney Roper praised the investigative efforts of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Lubbock Police Department, and the Amarillo Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jeffrey R. Haag.

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