Federal appeals court doesn’t buy argument of Las Vegas’ ‘wig bandit’

Tuesday, Dec. 12, 2000 | 11:02 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- A federal appeals court has upheld the conviction of the so-called "wig bandit," who claims he was framed in the robbery of three Las Vegas banks within two months in 1998.

The U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Monday rejected the arguments of Darren E. Henderson, who says he was set up because he was an informant for Metro Police.

Henderson, who was also wanted in a series of bank robberies in New Orleans, was identified when a picture of the bank robber was shown on "America's Most Wanted" television program. A man called the FBI and identified the suspect as Henderson.

The tipster also told the FBI that Henderson was staying at the Marriott Hotel in Las Vegas. Henderson was arrested, and authorities found in his car a gun and clothing that matched what the robber wore during the holdups. He wore either a maroon suit or camouflage fatigues and a matching hat or wig and brandished a black handgun.

At trial, Henderson sought to force the government to identify the informant. He said Judge Howard McKibben, the trial judge, should have heard arguments in his chambers on his motion to disclose the name of the tipster. He maintained several individuals held grudges against him because of his undercover work that led to their arrests.

The appeals court, in a unanimous decision written by Judge David Thompson, said "the government has a limited privilege to withhold an informant's identity." Thompson said, however, that the trial court must hold an in-chambers hearing "whenever the defendant makes a 'minimal threshold showing' that disclosure (of the tipster) would be relevant to at least one defense."

In this case, the court said disclosure of the informant "would not have explained away the most convincing evidence of Henderson's guilt." That evidence came from positive identification from bank employees and from a police detective who viewed the surveillance photographs showing one of the robberies.

Henderson was convicted of the Jan. 16, 1998, robbery of the Bank of America at 4610 W. Sahara Ave. and the March 13 holdups of Wells Fargo, 4720 S. Eastern Ave., and Bank of America, 1380 E. Flamingo Road. Those two robberies occurred within an hour of each other.