Charges Filed in St. Cloud Bank Hostage Case

(KNSI) – A 35-year-old Waite Park man has been charged with five counts of non-firearm kidnapping, one count of first-degree aggravated robbery and one count of second-degree assault for allegedly wielding a pair of scissors during a standoff with law enforcement at the Wells Fargo along 33rd Ave. South in St. Cloud.

Ray Reco McNeary is accused of holding five Wells Fargo employees hostage after attempting to rob the bank Thursday afternoon. Multiple law enforcement agencies, including the FBI, responded to the scene. The event began shortly before 2 p.m., and authorities took McNeary into custody around 10:30 p.m.

No one was hurt. The St. Cloud Police Department says a gun was not found in the building or on McNeary.

St. Cloud Police Chief William Blair Anderson said during a press conference late Thursday night that police have had “numerous contacts” with McNeary in the past. Charges on McNeary’s record include domestic assault, domestic assault by strangulation, obstruction of justice and making terroristic threats.

Charges against McNeary were filed in Stearns County District Court on Friday. He could face additional charges from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, FOX 9 KMSP reports.

___