Third Member of Three-Woman Bank Robbery Ring Sentenced to 19 Years for Participation in String of Bank Robberies
Case Results in Conviction of Three Individuals and Resolves Three Bank Robberies in Kalamazoo and an Attempted Bank Robbery in Flint

GRAND RAPIDS, MI—LaTasha Ann Nichols, 28, of Flint, Michigan, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Robert Holmes Bell to 19 years in federal prison for her role in a string of bank robberies that took place between 2009 and 2012. Nichols pled guilty to two counts of armed bank robbery and one count of using a firearm in the commission of a violent felony. In addition to the 19-year sentence for Nichols, Judge Bell previously sentenced Miranda Jamelle Dixon (28) to 17 years and Suzanne Cherre Alguarelles (38) to six years in prison for their roles in what the judge described as a dangerous and violent string of robberies.

U.S. Attorney Patrick A. Miles Jr. stated, “Armed bank robbery is a very serious crime that terrorizes members of our society and has the very real potential of causing serious personal injury, if not death, to innocent bystanders. This prosecution and the lengthy prison terms imposed reflect that violent crime will not be taken lightly in this district.”

The bank robbery string began in June 2009, when Nichols, Dixon, and Alguarelles stole a Dodge Neon from an apartment complex in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Nichols and Dixon drove the Dodge Neon to the National City Bank on Stadium Drive where they robbed the bank at gunpoint and obtained over $8,000. Nichols and Dixon then abandoned the stolen vehicle and traveled on foot to a nearby apartment complex where Alguarelles served as the getaway driver and facilitated their escape to the Detroit area. Nichols and Dixon attempted another bank robbery in Flint, Michigan, on November 16, 2011, but were thwarted by a security guard. The two traveled to Kalamazoo, Michigan, and on November 17, 2011, stole another Dodge Neon and robbed the Charter One Bank on West Main Street at gunpoint. The bank tellers handed over $7,222.01 after Dixon threatened that if the tellers used dye-packs she would come back and get them. Finally, on February 14, 2012, Dixon, acting alone, robbed the PNC Bank on Gull Road in Kalamazoo Township. Dixon again threatened the tellers with a firearm and obtained over $4,000.

The Kalamazoo Resident Agency of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety, and the Kalamazoo Township Police Department jointly investigated the robberies. The cases were prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ronald M. Stella.