NORFOLK, VA—Nicole Racquel Drakeford, 44, of Fountain Island, South Carolina, was sentenced today to 147 months in prison, followed by a term of supervised release, for armed bank robbery and for using, carrying, and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.

Dana J. Boente, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Royce E. Curtin, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Norfolk Field Office, made the announcement after sentencing by Senior United States District Judge Henry Coke Morgan, Jr.

Drakeford pleaded guilty on January 27, 2014. According to the statement of facts that were filed with her plea agreement, Drakeford took responsibility for committing a series of bank robberies across Virginia. Drakeford admitted that she robbed the Bank of America in Fairfax County, Virginia on July 15, 2013 and walked away with $5598. She admitted that on July 20, 2013, she robbed the United Bank in Fairfax County and took $1321. She also admitted that on July 31, 2013, she robbed a Chartway Federal Credit Union (FCU) in Chesapeake, Virginia with a gun and took approximately $302.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Norfolk Field Office and the Chesapeake Police Department. Managing Assistant United States Attorney Benjamin L. Hatch prosecuted the case on behalf of the United States.