Chiefs fan gets 17.5 years in federal prison for thefts committed while attending games at Arrowhead Stadium

Elizabeth MerrillCloseElizabeth MerrillESPN Senior WriterElizabeth Merrill has served as Senior Writer at ESPN since 2010, after previously writing for publications like the Kansas City Star and Omaha World-Herald.David PurdumCloseDavid PurdumESPN Staff Writer Joined ESPN as Staff Writer in 2014.
Since 2008, she has been reporting on the gambling industry from Kansas City. On September 5, 2024 at 12:50PM ETKansas City is my home base and one of my favorites to visit for work or pleasure! Thursday afternoon, Kansas Chiefs superfan Xaviar Babudar was sentenced to 17 1/2 years without parole and three years of supervised release for engaging in bank robberies across America. Babudar, widely known as ChiefsAholic, entered a plea bargain agreement back in February wherein he admitted stealing more than $800k through 11 bank robberies that occurred across seven states while laundering it through casinos. As Babudar left the courtroom, he gave them all a kiss before blowing them a goodbye kiss. According to Matthew Merryman, Babudar’s attorney alleged his crimes were motivated by gambling addiction but Patrick Daly from the U.S. Attorney’s Office refuted that notion saying instead it’s more an addiction to crime rather than gambling per se: “[His] addiction to fame,” according to one victim of two robberies cited by prosecutors, was moreover not warranted as their team did not deserve being held at gunpoint twice so an unknown individual wearing an elaborate animal suit could travel around and watch football games while placing costly bets against their team. “According to court documents, Babudar threatened Nashville credit union employees that if they provided him a dye pack he would “come back with a gun in hand and put one right through your skull. Merryman noted in another filing that Babudar has expressed regret, hopes to train in mechanical trades, and wants to assist other gamblers struggling with gambling addiction. An ESPN investigation determined that Babudar had experienced an unstable childhood as well as multiple legal troubles before posting false details online about himself, with much of what he posted being false or exaggerated information. Merryman noted in a filing that Babudar experienced childhood trauma and chronic homelessness, yet kept his secret life concealed for three decades until December 16, 2022 when Bixby police caught up with him after fleeing an attempted armed robbery at Tulsa Teachers Credit Union in Tulsa. Babudar was released from bond in February 2023, and one month after receiving $100,000 winnings from two bets on the Chiefs, cut off his GPS monitor and fled. For four months and while on the run from authorities he would rob banks in Sparks Nevada and El Dorado Hills California while making numerous bank runs while on his escape journey. On July 7, 2023, Babudar was arrested in Lincoln, California and his defense lawyer Merryman submitted to court that Babudar should receive a 10-year sentence to allow for time for him to correct any transgressions committed prior to being detained. Merryman noted, due to Xaviar’s celebrity status and potential ability to repay financial losses incurred as a result of his actions, they would potentially repay those financial losses more easily than usual. Meanwhile, Babudar was ordered by the court to make $532,455 restitution payments as well as turn over property acquired as part of their crimes — such as an autographed painting of quarterback Patrick Mahomes purchased at charity auction he obtained through fraudulent means; which has since been returned by Kansas City FBI agents. In April, a judge ordered Babudar to pay $10.8 million to a Bixby bank teller who he threatened with a gun in 2014. Babudar has been held at Leavenworth federal prison in Kansas; he requested being housed instead at Greenville federal penitentiary in Illinois pending sentencing.