Three Baton Rouge Men Sentenced for Robbing ATMs With Trucks

In a series of federal hearings held between September and November, three men learned their fate for a brazen string of ATM heists that rocked Baton Rouge credit unions back in 2022.

Deantae Mason, 26, of Baton Rouge, along with Houston residents Alex Mata, 23, and Brandon Griffin, 26, were sentenced to prison terms ranging from one to two years for their roles in a sophisticated, property-damaging conspiracy.

The sentencing, announced Monday by U.S. Attorney for the Louisiana Middle District Kurt Wall, closes a chapter on a crime spree that relied on raw mechanical force. As reported by The Advocate, the trio utilized a consistent, destructive methodology: scouting locations, stealing heavy-duty pickup trucks, and using tow straps to either rip exterior ATMs from their concrete foundations or tear the machine doors open to access the cash inside.

The group netted tens of thousands of dollars per successful hit. According to court filings, the spree began in earnest on February 12, 2022, at the Pelican State Credit Union on North Lobdell Boulevard. There, the men used a stolen truck to rip an ATM from its base, walking away with $106,120.

The group’s ambition grew by the following month. On March 11, 2022, Mason and Mata returned to the streets, this time using a truck equipped with a switched license plate to target a Neighbors Federal Credit Union branch on Howell Boulevard. That single operation yielded $170,000 in cash.

“Members of the conspiracy scouted banks for potential ATM thefts, surveilled nearby areas for large trucks to steal and served as lookouts while other members committed the ATM burglaries,” federal prosecutors stated in their announcement.

The indictment indicates the group did not stop there. Throughout March 2022, they attempted further attacks at the Neighbors Federal Credit Union on Coursey Boulevard, the Chase Bank on Plank Road, and the Investar Bank on Highland Road, targeting multiple locations across the city.

The financial aftermath of these crimes is substantial. Beyond their prison terms, all three men must pay restitution for the total cash stolen during their spree.

Individual	Prison Sentence	Restitution Ordered	Forfeiture
Deantae Mason	24 months	$285,120	$95,039
Alex Mata	22 months	$285,120	$95,039

Following their release from federal custody, each defendant will be subject to three years of supervised release. The investigation, which spanned multiple agencies, highlights the collaborative effort between the FBI, the Baton Rouge Police Department, and the East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Office.

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