LEETON, MISSOURI (BNO NEWS) — Federal regulators on Friday closed the Bank of Leeton in Leeton, Missouri, marking the sixth U.S. bank failure of 2010 following an economic turbulent year that saw more than one-hundred U.S. banks fail.

The Bank of Leeton was closed by the Missouri Division of Finance after its regular closing time on Friday. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) was appointed as receiver following its closure, who immediately entered into a purchase and assumption agreement with the Kansas-based Sunflower Bank, N.A., to assume all of the failed bank’s deposits.

The 1896-founded bank had only one branch, in Leeton.

Most, if not all customers, should see no or little service disruptions despite the closure of the institution. On Saturday, the branch of the Bank of Leeton will reopen during their normal business hours as a branch of the Sunflower Bank.

All of the failed bank’s services, including checks, ATM and debit cards, will remain active. “Checks drawn on the bank will continue to be processed,” the FDIC said in a statement. “Loan customers should continue to make their payments as usual.”

As of December 2009, the Bank of Leeton had approximately $20.1 million in total assets and $20.4 million in total deposits. Sunflower Bank paid the FDIC a premium of 0.59 percent to assume the deposits of the Bank of Leeton, the FDIC said. It said it will retain most of the assets from the bank for later disposition.

The FDIC said it estimates that the cost to the Deposit Insurance Fund (DIF) will be $8.1 million. It said Sunflower Bank’s acquisition of the deposits was the “least costly” resolution compared to other alternatives.

Friday’s closure was not only the sixth U.S. bank failure of 2010 but was also Missouri’s first bank failure since November 6, 2009. Regulators then closed the Gateway Bank of St. Louis.

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KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI (BNO NEWS) — A Kansas City man has been sentenced to more than 27 years in prison for unlawfully possessing a firearm despite a string of prior felony convictions, prosecutors said on Thursday.

Darron Eskridge, 31, was sentenced to 327 months in federal prison after a jury in August found him guilty on one count of unlawful possession of a firearm after felony convictions, said U.S. Attorney Lanny Welch.

Eskridge was arrested on September 23, 2008 during an investigation of a burglary in the 3700 block of Hutton Road in Kansas City. He possessed a .22-caliber revolver and a 12-gauge shotgun that were stolen in the burglary.

At the time he was arrested, Eskridge was prohibited from possessing a firearm because of ten prior felony convictions from 1996 through 2007 in Jackson County and Clay County, including burglary, possession of stolen property and firearms charges.

Welch commended the Kansas City Police Department, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and Assistant U.S. Attorney Terra Morehead for their work on the case.

(Copyright 2010 by BNO News B.V. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without explicit prior permission from BNO News B.V. Contact sales@bnonews.com for more information about subscriptions.)