"Route 128 Bandit" Pleads Guilty to Bank Robbery

BOSTON – A Boston man pleaded guilty today in federal court in Boston to robbing 10 banks in the greater Boston area.

Paul B. Landrum, dubbed the “Route 128 Bandit,” 38, pleaded guilty to 10 counts of bank robbery. U.S. Senior District Court Judge Douglas P. Woodlock scheduled sentencing for Aug. 13, 2018. In November 2017, Landrum was arrested and charged in federal court and has been in custody since.

Between July 31, 2017, and Oct. 6, 2017, eight banks were robbed in the Greater Boston area. After each robbery, the tellers described the perpetrator as a light-skinned black man, 30-to-45-years-old, wearing a baseball hat, sunglasses and a long-sleeved collarless shirt. Based on the descriptive similarities, law enforcement suspected that the same individual was involved in each robbery. 

Between Oct. 17, 2017, and Oct. 19, 2017, two more banks were robbed in the Greater Boston area. Following these robberies, the tellers described the robber, later determined to be Tamea Chambers, as a black woman, 30-to-35-years-old, wearing a wig. Based on the similar descriptions by the tellers, law enforcement suspected that the same individual was involved in these two robberies.

During their investigation of the latter robberies, law enforcement obtained video footage from a business connected to one of the banks that captured images of the female robber in the company of a light-skinned black male. Upon comparison of this video footage with the video footage of the first eight robberies, law enforcement determined the man to be the Route 128 Bandit.

An investigation into the robber’s get-away vehicle led law enforcement to identify Landrum as the suspect, and on Oct. 24, 2017, Landrum and Chambers were arrested in Boston. Landrum admitted to robbing eight banks individually, and assisting Chambers with the final two robberies.

Chambers was indicted in March 2018 and has a hearing in federal court in Boston on May 8.

Landrum faces a sentence of no greater than 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. 

United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling and Harold H. Shaw, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Office, made the announcement today. The Massachusetts State Police and the Boston, Brookline, Medford, Somerville, and Wellesley police departments assisted with the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kenneth G. Shine of Lelling’s Major Crimes Unit is prosecuting the case.

The details contained in the indictment are allegations. The remaining defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.