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Because the Kansas Metropolis Chiefs’ foremost hype man, Xaviar Babudar, identified by followers as ChiefsAholic, attended almost each sport, at dwelling and away. Given the hefty value of soccer tickets, it was a high-flying way of life, which Mr. Babudar attributed to profitable warehouses he managed throughout the Midwest.
However the cash that funded Mr. Babudar’s travels, federal prosecutors say, seems to have come, partly, from a extra illicit supply. Mr. Babudar is accused of committing a string of financial institution robberies throughout not less than six states during the last 12 months, together with in Iowa, the place he’s accused of stealing $70,000.
Mr. Babudar, 29, was arrested close to Sacramento, Calif., on Friday, the place federal brokers charged him with one rely of financial institution theft and one rely of transporting stolen property throughout state traces, the USA Lawyer’s Workplace within the Western District of Missouri mentioned in an announcement. It got here 4 months after he fled prosecution in Oklahoma in connection to a distinct financial institution theft.
That theft is certainly one of seven Mr. Babudar was accused of committing or trying between April 2022 and December 2022, in keeping with court docket paperwork unsealed on Monday. Prosectors mentioned Mr. Babudar had bought and redeemed greater than $1 million price of chips from casinos throughout the Midwest that seemed to be linked to the stolen cash. A grand jury will decide whether or not Mr. Babudar shall be indicted on the extra costs, the assertion added.
Federal prosecutors in Missouri declined to touch upon Mr. Babudar’s case.
In December, Mr. Babudar was accused of robbing a credit score union in Tulsa, Okla., utilizing a pistol he geared toward a teller’s face. He was launched in February after the bail bondsman, who was additionally a Kansas Metropolis Chiefs fan, agreed to publish Mr. Babudar’s $80,000 bail. A month later, the police mentioned he severed his ankle monitor and disappeared.
Tracy Tiernan, Mr. Babudar’s lawyer in Oklahoma, mentioned he had not been involved with Mr. Babudar since.
“I nonetheless have had no communication in any way with him aside from the 2 or three texts asking him the place he’s and pleading him to come back again,” Mr. Tiernan mentioned.
4 months after his escape, federal brokers discovered and arrested Mr. Babudar in California. He appeared on Tuesday afternoon within the U.S. District Courtroom for the Japanese District of California, the place a choose ordered that he stay in custody with out bail till he may very well be transferred again to Missouri. The date for the court docket listening to has not been set, in keeping with a spokesman for the U.S. District Courtroom in Missouri.
The Tulsa County district legal professional, Steve Kunzweiler, thanked federal brokers for locating and arresting Mr. Babudar and mentioned he nonetheless deliberate to pursue prosecution in Oklahoma. After Mr. Babudar escaped from a Tulsa jail, a choose had issued an arrest warrant and a brand new bond, this time set at $1 million.
“Tulsa County was the primary jurisdiction to arrest and cost Babudar in December 2022,” Mr. Kunzweiler mentioned. “My workplace will work with the U.S. Lawyer’s Workplace within the Western District of Missouri to find out the subsequent steps in holding him accountable,” he added.
For years, Mr. Babudar, identified for his exuberant persona and signature wolf costume, was a fixture at Kansas Metropolis Chiefs video games. He was featured repeatedly on N.F.L. broadcasts and had tens of 1000’s of followers on Twitter underneath his deal with @ChiefsAholic. (The account is now run by a distinct person.)
However his look in a Tulsa jail in December, and his occurring the lam, punctured his picture as an enterprising, affable soccer fan. A brand new narrative introduced by legislation enforcement and prosecutors portrayed a rootless man dwelling in his automobile with a document of petty crimes like shoplifting.
“He had a nasty hand dealt to him in life,” Mr. Tiernan mentioned, referring to Mr. Babudar. “He had no steering from his father, and he struggled with homelessness. It was a terrifically tough local weather for a teen to endure.”
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