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Charlotte Man Sentenced in U.S. District Court in Connection with Robbery of Bank of America Branch in Denver, North Carolina
Defendant to Serve More Than 19 Years in Federal Prison

U.S. Attorney’s Office August 06, 2009
  • Western District of North Carolina (704) 344-6222

CHARLOTTE, NC—Abdullah Fakih, 36, of Charlotte, was sentenced Tuesday to serve 235 months (more than 19 years) in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, and to pay victim restitution in the amouont of $22,125, Acting U.S. Attorney Edward R. Ryan, FBI Special Agent in Charge Owen D. Harris, and Lincoln County Sheriff Timothy L. Daugherty announced today.

Fakih was indicted in April 2008 and was tried by U.S. District Judge Richard L. Voorhees in January 2009 before a federal jury sitting in Statesville, North Carolona. Fakih was found guilty as charged, on two counts alleging 1) that he robbed the branch office of Bank of America located at 3768 North Highway 16, Denver, North Carolina on September 26, 2007, and 2) that he put in jeopardy the life of another person by the use of dangerous weapons, that is, handguns, in robbing Bank of America. Before imposing the sentence, the Court heard from a victim teller of Bank of America about the impact the robbery has had on her life.

Three co-defendants, Anthony Fleetwood, 24, of Atlanta; William Dixon, 42, of West Palm Beach, Florida; and Demond Dixon, 36, of Charlotte, were charged with aiding and abetting Fakih in the bank robbery, entered pleas of guilty, testified against Fakih at trial, and were each sentenced to serve 108 months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release. All four defendants have been in federal custody in relation to the bank robbery since May 2008.

According to testimony presented during the trial, Abdullah Fakih planned the robbery and was responsible for not only recruiting his accomplices, but for funding some of their travel during the planning stage; for securing and supplying the handguns which his coconspirators used in the robbery; for choosing which bank to rob and when to rob it; and for supervising the literal robbery itself, until he fled the scene. Trial testimony showed that on September 26, 2007, Defendants Fleetwood, Dixon, and Dixon entered the Highway 16 N, Denver, North Carolina branch of Bank of America with the intention of robbing it. Court testimony during the trial further showed that while Defendants Fleetwood, Dixon, and Dixon entered the bank, brandishing weapons, and herding both employees and customers into the bank’s vault, that Fakih was sitting in his vehicle in a parking lot behind the bank. The co-defendants testified that they were relying upon Fakih to drive them away from the scene, serving as the getaway driver, once the robbery had been successfully completed. Testimony further revealed that while Fleetwood, Dixon, and Dixon managed to take away $101,077 from the bank, all of which was ultimately recovered, Fakih, observing deputy sheriff presence on site, drove away from the scene by himself, leaving his three co-conspirators stranded. Fleetwood, Dixon, and Dixon, according to their own recitation of the events that transpired that day, fled the bank property on foot, running to a nearby dwelling where they waited for the owner to return. Further according to trial testimony, the three then kidnapped the owner upon his return to his house, and carjacked him. They were apprehended shortly thereafter by law enforcement after having wrecked the stolen vehicle. Defendant Fakih was arrested by local authorities in October 2007.

The sentence of Abdullah Fakih was handed down Tuesday, August 4, 2009 by U.S. District Judge Richard L. Voorhees. Co-defendants Anthony Fleetwood and William Dixon were sentenced on May 4, 2009. Demond Dixon was also sentenced on August 4. The case was investigated and presented for federal prosecution by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicks Williams of the U.S. Attorney’s Office handled the prosecution for the government.

A term of federal imprisonment is served without the possibility of parole.

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