Show-Me State Times

A St. Louis County man has been sentenced to 107 months in federal prison for a series of bank robberies and an attempted robbery across the region.

Derrick Snulligan, 62, of Velda Village Hills, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Henry E. Autrey on Thursday. According to court documents, Snulligan committed five bank robberies and one attempted robbery between April 2023 and June 2024.

On April 18, 2023, Snulligan handed a note demanding money to a teller at a Northwoods bank while wearing a mask. He returned to the same location on August 28 that year and repeated the act. On October 13, he made another attempt but left after a teller activated an alarm.

By June 24, 2024, his notes had become more threatening. At a Hazelwood credit union, he passed a note stating: “I[f] you don’t want to get hurt, go in your drawer and give me 6-one hundred dollar bills, 4-fifty dollar bills, 10-ten dollar bills, and 20-5 dollar bills as quickly as possible,” according to his plea agreement. The teller complied with his demands.

Three days later, Snulligan robbed two credit unions in St. Louis and Florissant using similar methods. His note at one location read: “If you don’t want to get shot I suggest you go in your drawer and give me 30 one hundred dollar bill[s], 20 fifty dollar bills, 30, 20 dollar bills and 40, 10 dollar bills as quickly as possible.”

After these final robberies on June 27, investigators traced the getaway vehicle—a blue Buick Encore—to Snulligan. Authorities recovered some of the stolen money from him; he repaid the remainder before sentencing.

“Derrick Snulligan terrorized bank employees who feared for their lives,” said Special Agent in Charge Chris Crocker of the FBI St. Louis Division. “Today’s sentence delivers justice for the trauma he caused.”

Snulligan pleaded guilty in March to five counts of bank robbery under the name Derrick Jackson.

The investigation was conducted by the FBI along with police departments from Florissant, St. Louis Metropolitan area, and Northwoods. Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul D’Agrosa prosecuted the case.

This prosecution is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), which coordinates efforts among law enforcement agencies and community organizations to reduce violent crime through strategies such as building trust within communities and focusing enforcement priorities.