Espanola Man Pleads Guilty to Robbing Espanola Bank in September 2013

ALBUQUERQUE—Stephen Gurule, 34, of Espanola, New Mexico, pleaded guilty this morning to an indictment charging him with bank robbery.

Gurule was arrested on October 3, 2013 on a criminal complaint charging him with robbing the Community Bank located at 411 Carr Lane, Espanola, New Mexico, on September 27, 2013, and subsequently was indicted on a bank robbery charge.

According to court filings, the Community Bank was robbed at approximately 3:00 p.m. on September 27, 2013, by a man who passed a handwritten note demanding money to a bank teller. On October 1, 2013, the FBI received a call from an individual who reported that Gurule had confessed to robbing the Community Bank. The following day, another individual called the FBI to report that Gurule had confessed to robbing a bank in Espanola. The FBI obtained an arrest warrant for Gurule on October 3, 2013, after comparing a driver’s license photograph of Gurule to the robber shown on the bank surveillance video and determining that the robber appeared to be Gurule.

During today’s proceedings, Gurule entered a guilty plea to the indictment and admitted robbing Community Bank on September 27, 2013. Gurule has been in federal custody since his arrest and remains detained pending his sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled. At sentencing, Gurule faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison.

This case was investigated by the Santa Fe Office of the FBI and City of Espanola Police Department, and it is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney David M. Walsh.