In case you missed it: 3 recent Springfield crimes

Here are three crime stories the Springfield News-Sun reported recently.

1. Springfield man sentenced to 16 years for child porn 

Oliver Sanders III, 26, was convicted by a jury of nearly 50 counts related to child porn. He was sentenced last week to 16 years in prison.

In addition to the prison sentence Sanders will have to register as a Tier II sex offender every six months for the next 25 years.

Sanders was originally indicted on 61 counts, including raping two young girls, but a jury found him not guilty of rape and gross sexual imposition charges.

RELATED: Springfield man convicted of nearly 50 counts related to child porn

Springfield Police launched their investigation into Sanders in early March when two young girls were interviewed and one girl told authorities that Sanders showed her a picture of child porn on his phone.

An extraction on the phone revealed 10 videos that showed children younger than 10 engaging in sex acts and more than 350 pictures of similar content, according to law enforcement.

During Sanders’ trial, he told the jury that he bought the phone secondhand off Amazon and that the pictures and videos law enforcement found must already have been downloaded before he purchased it — but jurors didn’t agree.

After the sentence was handed down, Sanders’ attorney did ask the judge to appoint an attorney for a possible appeal of the case.

2. Springfield police investigate bank robbery 

Law enforcement responded to New Carlisle Federal Savings Bank Wednesday at around 5 p.m. after employees alerted officials of a robbery, a Springfield police report says.

“(The witness) stated that the suspect put a note on her counter that said ‘robbery’ and ‘I have a gun,’” according to the report. “(The witness) gave the suspect the money from her drawer.”

The woman stated that the suspect had a tattoo of a clock on the top of his left hand and was wearing dark sunglasses with shaggy hair.

The suspect wasn’t finished robbing the bank, the report says. After taking money from the first teller’s drawer he then turned his attention to another.

RELATED: Springfield bank robber claimed to have gun, report says 

“He asked (the teller) what she was doing when she began to get up from her chair,” the report says. “She stated that she wasn’t doing anything. He then stated ‘Give me all of yours too.’ (The teller) then gave him the money in her drawer. He then stated ‘I want all of it.’”

The teller told the man that he got all of it. The report says the man collected the note and then left through the front door of the bank and was last seen heading southbound.

“No firearm was seen during this robbery but the suspect did have his hands in the pocket of his hoodie like he had a weapon,” the report says.

Springfield police collected evidence at the scene, the report says, and it is an ongoing investigation.

“K-9 units from other agencies responded to check the area for the suspect, but he was unable to be located,’’ according to the report.

3. Man arrested, accused of public indecency in downtown Urbana

Michael Bass, 41, was arrested Thursday, Urbana Police Chief Matt Lingrell said. He was  wanted for an incident that took place inside the Kaleidoscape Antique Shop in downtown Urbana.

Bass was charged with public indecency, mischief, voyeurism, three counts of menacing and disorderly conduct.

Lingrell said that the charges are a result from actions that” allegedly involved Bass and three females who were inside the store at the time, who observed Bass allegedly committing a sexual act upon himself while in their presence,” Lingrell said. “It is also alleged that Bass caused damage to an item that was on display for sale while inside the store.”

RELATED: Urbana man arrested, accused of public indecency 

Bass was arrested Thursday afternoon by Springfield police, Lingrell said. He was arrested on Urbana warrants, the chief said, and he was turned over to Urbana police later that afternoon.

Bass was booked into Tri-County Jail shortly after, Lingrell said. He was not listed as an inmate in the jail Friday morning.

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