Macon man convicted of bank robbery gets prison time after thefts at gunpoint. What to know
The Macon man who admitted to stealing more than $38,000 from two credit unions was ordered to serve a little over eight years in prison Wednesday.
He also has to repay the money he stole from the two credit unions.
Judge Marc Treadwell sentenced Felix Cordes on Wednesday to eight years and one month. He pleaded guilty to one count of bank robbery in early January as part of a plea deal with the government, which got his other charges — four counts of bank robbery, five counts of possessing a gun during a violent crime and three counts of possessing ammunition as a convicted felon — dismissed.
The allegations he admitted to stemmed from him stealing $35,155 from Midsouth Community Federal Credit Union and $3,119 from a Central Georgia Regional Credit Union in Macon in 2022, both at gunpoint. In total, he stole $38,274.
Treadwell ordered him to repay each credit union for the amount he stole.
Cordes’ attorney, Tim Saviello, attempted to convince Treadwell to give him roughly six years in prison, considering “cognitive limitations” Cordes has had since he was born that led to him being in the courthouse. Saviello said that, after recognizing that he was being treated differently, he acted out as a result.
And after an earlier conviction led him to serve 10 years, he vowed “to stay out of trouble and tried to find meaningful work,” Saviello told Treadwell. But Cordes committed further offenses, including this case.
Joy Odom, the prosecutor, shared concerns that he wouldn’t be able to stop committing crimes after release, considering the robbery at Central Georgia Regional Credit Union also involved his son, Larry Jerome Chapman. Treadwell agreed, and denied the request for a more lenient sentence.
Saviello and Treadwell suggested Cordes could benefit from programs in the Bureau of Prisons. His prison sentence will be followed by five years of supervised release.
Chapman was sentenced to five years in prison in March after he pleaded guilty to being an accessory to bank larceny in December. His sentence will be served consecutively with the sentences received for other cases in Crisp County and Dooly County, court records show.
How he did it
Cordes robbed Midsouth Community Federal Credit Union on April 5, 2022. He disguised himself in overalls, a bandana and sunglasses, court records say. He entered, approached tellers with a black handgun and told them to “take the money out,” according to court documents. Cordes went behind the tellers at the credit union, pulled cash from two drawers and put it inside a white bag. He then left.
During the robbery, he told the tellers that the cash was insured and they’d be getting it back anyway, court records show. The tellers experienced panic attacks during the robbery, federal prosecutors said.
He then used $300 from the stolen money to buy two cell phones from a Boost Mobile at Baconsfield Shopping Center.
Cordes robbed Central Georgia Regional Credit Union on May 5, 2022, alongside Chapman, federal prosecutors said. Cordes disguised himself using blue latex gloves and took $3,119.
Cordes and Chapman attempted to rob another Midsouth Community Federal Credit Union on May 24, 2022, but were thwarted by staff as they saw both the perpetrators, who were masked, approaching the bank with silver handguns drawn. The staff locked down the bank.
Law enforcement was able to tie Cordes to the robberies after they raided his house and found the bandana he wore during the Midsouth bank robbery and the blue latex gloves he wore when he robbed Central Georgia Regional Credit Union, court records say.
