A Hesperus woman accused of robbing a bank in Albuquerque has been released from custody while her case goes through the federal court process.
Keylee Rose Moore, 21, is suspected of entering New Mexico Bank and Trust on June 1 on Louisiana Boulevard and passing a note to a bank teller demanding money, according to a June 29 news release issued by the U.S. Department of Justice in New Mexico.
The teller handed $158 to Moore, who walked out and fled, according to case documents.
The FBI received a tip June 6 identifying Moore as the person who allegedly robbed the bank. After an investigation, she was arrested June 17 at her home in Hesperus.
Moore has been charged with one count of bank robbery, a felony. If convicted, she faces up to 20 years in prison, according to the FBI. She has not entered a plea in the case, according to the U.S. District Court in New Mexico.
On Aug. 13, Moore was released from jail to the third-party custody of the La Pasada Halfway House in Albuquerque.
On Oct. 14, U.S. Magistrate Judge Steve Yarbrough granted a modified condition of pretrial release that allowed Moore to leave La Pasada and return home to Hesperus while her case continues. She lives with her mother, stepfather and younger sister.
According to the order, Moore is permitted to travel outside La Plata County only with permission from U.S. Pretrial Services.
Prosecutors did not object to the motion for pretrial release. The U.S. probation office in Durango has approved her residence in Hesperus as an appropriate pretrial placement.
In the motion for Moore to return home, federal public defender Amanda R. Lavin noted she has no criminal history and has complied with conditions at the La Pasada Halfway House.
Lavin said Moore has no ties to Albuquerque, and is a lifelong resident of Colorado. COVID-19 restrictions at La Pasada do not allow for in-person contact visits with family members.
Lavin argued that Moore had a legal right to less restrictive conditions that would reasonably ensure her appearance at future court hearings and the safety of the community.
Lavin’s motion also says Moore’s release from La Pasada would “make room for future female residents who might otherwise remain in custody.”
A status hearing in the case has been continued, and no court date has been set, according to the U.S. District Court in New Mexico.
According to a criminal complaint, the robbery occurred about noon. Based on witnesses and security camera images, the suspect was described as wearing a blond wig, dark trench coat, boots, purse and a face mask.
The suspect placed a note on the bank teller’s counter that read: “Put all the money in a bag, if anyone asks I’m closing my account. Do not panic, there is a man with my sister at gunpoint. If we don’t get away, we both die. Please wait at least 15 nutes before you call. e will kill us if I don’t get the money.” Part of the note was torn, and a few words had missing letters, according to the affidavit.
The bank teller gave the woman money from the teller drawer, and she left the bank on foot.
Security cameras from a residential neighborhood on the east side of the bank showed a woman matching the description of the robbery suspect and a four-door, dark-colored SUV with light-colored fenders and bumpers.
On June 6, a tipster identified Moore as a possible suspect, according to the complaint, after she recognized the suspect’s boots and purse. The tipster, an apparent acquaintance, said Moore was “in over her head” and admitted to the robbery when confronted with a picture from the bank robbery. The tipster said Moore returned to Hesperus without any money because a gang she was associated with took it.
The tipster also said Moore shaved her head in fall, and began wearing wigs.
The tipster tracked Moore’s cellphone, and noticed she was in Albuquerque near Louisiana Boulevard about midday June 1. The previous two days, the iPhone showed it was at a Motel 6 in Moriarty, New Mexico, about 40 miles east of Albuquerque along Interstate 40.
Using Facebook, investigators searched for “Keylee Rose Moore” and found a photo of a vehicle that matched the one at the scene of the robbery.
Investigators obtained Moore’s driver’s license photo and matched it with photos from the bank. They also conducted surveillance at her home in Hesperus, where the vehicle was parked.
The FBI said it searched Moore’s house, seizing the boots and purse and gained a confession that she robbed the bank of about $150. She said two other people involved with the robbery took the wig, jacket and money after the robbery.
The case is being investigated by the FBI, with assistance from the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, Southwest Drug Task Force, La Plata County Sheriff’s Office and Albuquerque Police Department.
The Journal reached out to Moore via her Facebook page for comment about the case, but had not received a reply as of publication.
