Columbia Man Pleads Guilty to Robbing Banks, Pharmacy

U.S. Attorney’s OfficeDecember 21, 2011

JEFFERSON CITY, MO—Beth Phillips, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a Columbia, Mo., man pleaded guilty in federal court today to robbing a pharmacy and two banks.

Louis Michael Patti, 28, of Columbia, pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Matt J. Whitworth to the charges contained in a June 23, 2011, federal indictment.

Patti admitted that he robbed Flow’s Pharmacy, 1506 E. Broadway, Columbia, on March 17, 2011. Patti displayed what appeared to be a small black handgun and ordered a pharmacy employee to give him all of the hydrocodone and oxycontin. The employee gave Patti 10 manufacturer’s bottles of oxycontin, each containing 100 tablets, as well as six or seven bottles of hydrocodone. According to today’s plea agreement, the replacement cost of the drugs was $5,916.

Patti returned to Flow’s Pharmacy on May 13, 2011, at about 8 a.m. and wandered about the front of the store until the owner arrived. When the owner stepped behind the counter, Patti displayed an eight-inch knife and told the owner, “I want all your oxycodone.” The owner, who had armed himself with a handgun after the first robbery, retrieved his weapon and chased Patti from the store.

The next day, May 14, 2011, Patti stole $4,920 from Clay County Savings Bank, 8140 N. Brighton, Kansas City, Mo. Patti asked a teller for a deposit slip, on which he wrote a demand note that indicated he had a gun. The teller handed him cash from her drawer, and he quickly left the bank.

On May 20, 2011, Patti stole $2,192 from Boone County National Bank, 1916 Paris Rd., Columbia by presenting a demand note to a teller.

Under federal statutes, Patti is subject to a sentence of up to 20 years in federal prison without parole, plus a fine up to $250,000 on each of the three counts. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lawrence E. Miller. It was investigated by the FBI, the Columbia, Mo., Police Department and the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department.