BREAKING: Suspect arrested in Hedrick Bank Robbery

Sigourney, Iowa- A suspect has been taken into custody in reference to an August bank robbery. Ethan Nelson-Davis Spray, 28, of Ottumwa, was arrested on October 1 and charged with first-degree robbery.

According to a criminal complaint filed by the Keokuk County Deputy Sheriff Adam Pence, at 2:45 pm on August 6, a 911 call was received in reference to an armed robbery in progress at South Ottumwa Savings Bank in Hedrick.

“During the course of the robbery, the suspect was reported to be armed with a dangerous weapon, to wit: a pistol. The suspect obtained a large amount of US currency during the course of the robbery,” Pence writes in the complaint.

After the robbery, the suspect, later identified as Spray, fled the scene in a red vehicle, at that time believed to be a Cadillac or Buick sedan. The compliant states that after the robbery, a private citizen reported finding a burning bag of clothes on a rural road south of Hedrick, across the Wapello County line. The clothes in the bag were later recovered by law enforcement and identified as matching the clothes last seen on the suspect who had robbed the Bank. The clothing and bag were then sent to the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation crime lab for DNA analysis, the complaint states.

On August 16, search warrants were executive on several residences in the area of individuals suspected of participating in the robbery. The complaint further states that during the course of the execution of a search warrant in Ottumwa at the residence of Ethan Spry, law enforcement discovered evidence connecting Spray to the August 6th robbery. A DNA sample of spray was collected and sent to the DCI lab for analysis. Spray’s DNA was a match to DNA found on some of the clothes discovered south of Hedrick, which matched what the robbery suspect was last seen wearing.

During the course of the investigation into the Hedrick robbery, information was discovered connecting Spray to the June 1st robbery of Pilot Grove Savings Bank, in Packwood.

As a result of the investigation, authorities have charged Spray with two counts of first-degree robbery. Spray currently faces one charge in Keokuk County in connection to the Hedrick bank robbery, while he also faces one charge in Jefferson County in connection to the Packwood bank robbery.

Spray has not yet made a court appearance. His bond is currently set at $25,000 cash only. Oskaloosa attorney Michael Fisher has been appointed to represent Spray.