Grand Jury Indicts KC Chiefs Superfan in Credit Union, Bank Robbery Cases

The hundreds of thousands of dollars that Xaviar Babudar allegedly robbed from credit unions and banks, according to law enforcement, supported his lifestyle of attending every home and away game of the Kansas City Chiefs dressed as a wolf in Chiefs clothing and gaining national notoriety as a superfan of the Super Bowl Champions.

Babudar, 29, who lived a nomadic existence at various locations around the Kansas City metro area, was charged in a 19-count indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Kansas City, Mo., on Wednesday, according to federal prosecutors. The indictment charged Babudar with three counts of armed bank robbery, one count of bank theft, 11 counts of money laundering and four counts of transporting stolen property across state lines.

According to the indictment, he laundered the stolen funds by purchasing and redeeming more than $1 million in chips from casinos in Missouri, Kansas and Illinois between April and December 2022. He deposited this laundered money and casino winnings into accounts at branches of the $4.6 billion CommunityAmerica Credit Union based in Lenexa, Kan. After one robbery, however, he deposited some of the funds into accounts at the $956 million Mazuma Credit Union’s branches in Missouri, according to the indictment.

His football fan lifestyle, however, came to an abrupt end when he was arrested and jailed after allegedly robbing $150,250 from the $2.6 billion Tulsa Teachers Federal Credit Union branch in Bixby, Okla., on Dec. 16, 2022.

During a playoff game on Dec. 18, Kansas City Chiefs fans became concerned that their “ChiefsAholic,” Babudar’s Twitter handle, was mysteriously absent and hadn’t posted any new messages on social media. Twitter sleuths reportedly found out he was in an Oklahoma jail cell, which captured national coverage from sports media outlets.

When Babudar was released on bond in February 2023, he was required to wear an ankle monitor. But at that time, law enforcement authorities were apparently unaware that he placed two Super Bowl bets months earlier that paid off big time and gave him the resources to go on lam.

On June 10, 2022, Babudar bet $5,000 at the Argosy Casino in Alton, Ill., that Kansas City Chiefs’ quarterback Patrick Mahomes would win the Most Valuable Player at Super Bowl LVII, with a payout of $45,000. He also bet $5,000 that the Kansas City Chiefs would win the Super Bowl with a payout of $55,000, according to the indictment.

When the Kansas City Chiefs won the Super Bowl on Feb. 12 and Mahomes was named the Most Valuable Player, Babudar won $100,000. Argosy Casino mailed him a $100,000 check in early March 2023.

According to authorities, days later Babudar cut his ankle monitor and became a fugitive until he was arrested in Sacramento, Calif., on July 7.

Babudar’s alleged robbery spree began on March 2 when he stole $70,000 from the Clive, Iowa branch of Great Western Bank. He then carried this money to Missouri, depositing it in two separate transactions into his personal savings account at CACU.

Next, on April 28, Babudar allegedly stole $170,860 from the branch of First National Bank of Omaha, Neb. Local police officers recovered $163,560 following the theft.

His first credit union heist occurred on July 14, when he held up the West Des Moines, Iowa branch of the $97 million First Class Community Credit Union and stole $303,845, according to law enforcement. During the course of this robbery, Babudar allegedly brandished what appeared to be a silver and black firearm, jumped over the teller counter and demanded that employees open the vault. He carried this money back to Missouri, and the next day deposited $23,000 into his savings account, prosecutors wrote in the indictment.

He used some of the stolen funds to make casino chip purchases in Missouri and Illinois over the next three months, cashed out his winnings and deposited those funds into his CACU savings account.

On Nov. 17, Babudar allegedly stole $125,900 from the Nashville, Tenn., branch of the $440 million Tennessee Credit Union. In the course of this robbery, Babudar also allegedly brandished what appeared to be a silver and black firearm, climbed over the teller counter and demanded that employees take him to the vault. A few days later, he used some of the stolen money to purchase $20,000 in casino chips in multiple transactions.

Following two unsuccessful robberies of the $8.8 billion Wings Financial Credit Union branch in Savage, Minn., and the $4.8 billion Royal Credit Union branch in Apple Valley, Minn., on Nov. 29, Babudar returned to Clive, Iowa the next day, according to investigators.

The Great Western Bank that he had allegedly robbed back on March 2 had become a branch of First Interstate Bank. In the course of this robbery, Babudar also allegedly brandished what appeared to be a silver and black firearm, jumped over the teller counter and ordered employees at gunpoint to open the vault. He then carried the $25,000 he stole back to Missouri, where he deposited $8,000 at Mazuma’s Kansas City branch. He also deposited $5,000 in Mazuma’s East Lee’s Summit branch.

While he was on the run from law enforcement, Babudar is suspected of allegedly robbing two other banks in California and Nevada, according to court documents filed last week in federal court.

Prosecutors filed a list of exhibits of bank surveillance photographs of alleged robberies at the Heritage Bank branch in Sparks, Nev., on June 8 and the U.S. Bank branch in El Dorado Hills, Calif., on July 3. The exhibits list also included photographs of clothes, presumably worn by the suspect during the alleged robbery, which were found in Babudar’s car on July 10, the day he was arrested, according to court documents.

Babudar, who remains in custody, waived his right to a preliminary hearing on Aug. 9 during a federal court hearing in Kansas City.

READ MORE: Xavier Babudar’s Indictment.