Indiana Man Pleads Guilty to Bank Robbery and Firearm Offenses

A. Courtney Cox, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, announced today that on May 18, 2010, DANIEL L. RAVELLETTE, age 61, of Vincennes, Indiana, pled guilty to one count of Aggravated Bank Robbery, and one count of Using a Firearm in Relation to a Crime of Violence, in the United States District Court in East St. Louis.

The violations occurred on December 19, 2009, when RAVELLETTE and another male entered the Regions Bank in Lebanon, Illinois wearing masks and gloves and carrying firearms. A third male waited outside the bank as a lookout and get-away driver. The tellers reported that during the robbery, RAVELLETTE pointed the guns at them and threatened them. RAVELLETTE fired several shots at the pursuing O’Fallon Police Officer in an effort to escape. RAVELLETTE was eventually stopped and taken into custody. A search of RAVELLETTE’s person revelaed two loaded pistol magazines, a portable radio with an attached earpiece, a pistol holster, white plastic flex cuffs, a small caliber pistol, and a large amount of cash.

Aggravated Bank Robbery carries with it a possible penalty of a term of imprisonment of not more than twenty-five (25) years, a fine of $250,000, or both, and a term of supervised release of not more than five (5) years. Using a Firearm in Relation to a Crime of Violence, carries with it a potential penalty of a term of imprisonment of not less than ten (10) years to life, to run consecutive to the sentence imposed on the Aggravated Robbery count, a fine of note more than $250,000, and up to three years of supervised release. Sentencing is currently scheduled for September 9, 2010, in East St. Louis, Illinois. Both of RAVELLETTE’s co-defendants are in custody pending trial. They are presumed to be innocent of charges and are entitled to a fair trial at which the government must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Lebanon Police Department, the O’Fallon Police Department, the Fairview Heights Police Department, the Mascoutah Police Department, the Illinois State Police, and the St. Clair County Sheriff’s Department. The case is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney Angela Scott.