A Gilbertville man has taken a plea agreement after stealing an ATM and leading police on a high speed chase in May of 2025, according to KWWL. 56 year old John Bennett has pleaded guilty to one count of Credit Union Larceny. Bennett stole a pickup truck in Waterloo on May 3rd of 2025. He then drove the truck to a parking lot in Cedar Falls. Next, he walked down the street and stole a forklift from a construction site. He drove the forklift to a credit union and attempted to take an interactive teller machine but he could not properly position the machine so he drove the forklift to another credit union down the street. There, he was able to successfully steal an ATM. He took the ATM back to the pickup in the parking lot where he loaded the ATM into the back. Police responding to alarms at both credit unions found Bennett in the stolen truck. He then led them on a chase that reached speeds of 100mph and lasted more than 40 minutes. Multiple sets of stop sticks were deployed to bring the chase to the end but Bennett kept going. By the time the truck became inoperable, it no longer had any tires and the rims and running boards were resting on the ground. Bennett has a prior federal conviction for Credit Union Burglary and Credit Union Larceny. He will be sentenced at a later date where he will face up to 10 years in prison.
