Waite Park Man Sentenced for 2021 Bank Robbery and Hostage Situation
- A Waite Park man was sentenced to 6.5 years for a 2021 St. Cloud bank robbery.
- The robbery involved taking multiple hostages during the attempted heist.
- The sentencing marks the end of a legal process involving the bank robbery.
ST. CLOUD, Minn. — Ray McNeary, a 39-year-old man from Waite Park, was sentenced on Thursday to six years and six months in prison for his role in a bank robbery that took place in St. Cloud in May 2021. The incident occurred at a Wells Fargo bank, where McNeary took five employees hostage during a tense standoff that lasted eight hours. According to the criminal complaint, McNeary became agitated while discussing potential fraud on his account with the bank manager, who was unable to locate it. In response, the manager activated a silent panic alarm, prompting several customers to flee the building. However, McNeary demanded $60,000 in cash from the vault and threatened the hostages, claiming he would harm them and wanted a "big show" involving the FBI and media. During the standoff, McNeary reportedly held a pair of scissors against the bank manager's neck and back, escalating the situation. Fortunately, four of the employees managed to escape, and the standoff concluded when the bank manager fled, allowing law enforcement to intervene and arrest McNeary without any injuries to the hostages. McNeary pleaded guilty to one count of armed bank robbery in March. In addition to his prison sentence, he will serve five years of supervised release and is required to pay $8,210 in restitution.