Man Charged in Savannah Bank Robbery

Acting Special Agent in Charge (SAC) Ricky Maxwell, FBI Atlanta Field Office, in conjunction with Chief Julie Tolbert, Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police Department, announces the following federal charges regarding the May 8, 2012 armed robbery of a Savannah-area bank.

On Tuesday, May 8, 2012, at approximately 11:14 a.m., two masked males entered the Savannah Bank branch located at 4809 Waters Avenue in Savannah, Georgia, and demanded that everyone in the bank lie on the lobby floor. One of the robbers forcibly put employees on the ground as he pointed a handgun at them. After obtaining an undisclosed amount of money, the robbers departed the bank without further incident.

On Thursday, January 9, 2014, Derick Lashawn Hayes, 28 years of age, of Savannah, Georgia, was charged via federal criminal complaint with violation of Title 18 USC 2113, bank Rrobbery, in connection with the above May 8, 2012 bank robbery. Hayes, who is already in the custody of the Bullock County Sheriff’s Department, will be detained on these federal charges and will appear in front of a U.S. Magistrate Judge for an initial appearance at a later time.

Ricky Maxwell, Acting SAC, FBI Atlanta, stated, “The federal charges brought in this matter are a direct result of the FBI’s recently established Safe Streets Violent Crimes Task force based in Savannah and the close cooperation and assistance provided by the Savannah Chatham Metro Police Department.”

The public should be reminded that the above are merely allegations and that all persons are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.